Every year, every month, every week,
every day, I proceed forward
at the same time that I reflect back upon my life -
including the things that I have done,
the experiences that I have had,
and, most importantly, the people whom I have known -
and time and time again I am staggered by
the how much I, and the world around me,
has changed, and I also wonder how
and why I am still here and still doing what I have
been doing for as long as I can remember…
there must be a reason, there has to be an explanation,
there must be an answer to why things happened
and happen the way that they always have, and always will -
that is what I tell myself, and I have been telling myself,
for years, since I came to the realisation
that I have a purpose beyond comprehension…
as the tidal waves of the tsunami of change -
often caused by an unseen, and yet powerful,
reality explosive influence spread and engulf us all,
we are given a choice because of which we must
immediately reach within ourselves
a response, a decision, as well as solution
to the situation that we must face,
and sometimes the most important thing to do
in such a situation is to simply take a breath
and go with the first instinct that comes afterwards.
Everyone, everywhere, seeks guidance
every time everything seems to be going
not as they expected and envisioned it would -
because confusion and chaos is always waiting in the wings
to consume us with fear, anxiety, pain, anger,
and drag us down into a darkness of our own making…
within darkness there will always be light -
even if that light is only but an echo and an afterimage -
and where there is light there is hope,
where there is light there is life,
and where there is the potential for finding
that which you have been unable to obtain,
it is essential to understand that sometimes
we always must journey into the unknown
and follow the path of our own destiny;
and sometimes it is only the fleeting gift of time
that we get to realise and receive the best insight
there could ever be of why what we do matters
and how what we believe and feel
can impact us and others around us,
as well as far away, and far into the future -
because we are all connected
and travelling together through time,
and each of us, everywhere, every minute,
every hour, every day, every month, every year,
are all leaping from one reality of possibilities to another -
and that thought, to me, is what makes life
worth living, embracing, continuing,
promising, and maintaining,
generation after generation.
realities
My Poem ‘Tales of Wonder Lands’
Every great and compelling character of literature
was inspired by a real person, actual people,
idyllic dreams and memories of imagined places;
every great story, every great tale,
came to life by bringing together
within the vivid and infinite imagination of a writer
lots of influences and sources of inspiration –
from one to a hundred different amazing lives and faces.
All my favourite stories, and characters, as a child, and now,
were adventures with heroes at the centre of them,
who did the impossible, who went where I,
nor anyone, had ever gone before;
my favourite tales of wonder featured superheroes
who had the power with a single leap to leave the ground
and to be able to soar among the clouds;
the most important role-models of mine
of literature and fantasy were those who had unbounded life,
energy, hope, and a thirst to overcome potential
circumstances and obstacles, for the greater good of others,
and help those in need, in any and every way that they could.
Peter Pan, Super-man, could easily fly
without a second thought,
and travel to far away worlds,
and shine a light for others to follow;
Robin Hood, Spider-man, stood up for the plight
of the oppressed, and those who had been wronged by someone,
and who were not afraid to bend the rules of the law
in their own way: by robbing the rich to give to the poor,
or fighting to save the life of a stranger in trouble,
because it is the right thing to do;
The Man With No Name, Captain James T. Kirk –
men traveling and exploring their own individual
amazing and sometimes tumultuous and lawless frontiers,
encountering allies and enemies around every corner,
and leaving an impression of themselves, their name,
their face, and their inspiring values wherever they go;
Alice from Alice in Wonderland, Neo from the film The Matrix –
characters of different gender, age,
and from different stories about different worlds,
but who both were given a choice and an opportunity
to follow a White Rabbit, and free their minds,
and see the world that you can find
when you step through a looking-glass,
and be gifted an experience that is only bestowed
to a chosen few.
The easiest way for a writer
to create a brand new character
is to base their appearance
and their demeanour on someone familiar;
the best way to craft a memorable epic
is to populate it with characters of depth and soul,
and a reason to be as strong as a living,
breathing, physical person;
even characters capable of performing the fantastic
have to have something, or someone, to which,
or to whom, they care about and are forever anchored to,
who have flaws to them that readers and watchers
can associate with, sympathize with, support, and champion.
Some of the best stories and characters
are based in realities and worlds
in which there is no true black and white,
light and dark, and the characters have to walk a grey line,
and have to question themselves and the roles in the time
and society that they live;
most of the stories that live on through the ages
have human characters who are given great power
and great responsibility to do something amazing,
and to make a difference with;
writers, poets, storytellers, dramatists, directors, artists,
envision worlds, and immortalize people, that in real life
they have a relationship to, like family, and old friends;
everyone can find people and places in stories,
books, films, poems, which they enjoy reading about,
returning to, going on adventures with,
seeing things that can only be seen in the dream-scape
of a persons imagination, and what we all bring back with us
from these times, and universes,
and what we learn from the fictional and real people we meet
may one day be the muse and the inspiration
for brand new tales of wonder lands.
Mark The Poet 