Life never ceases to amaze me
and to surprise me in so many ways…
I have been aware for a while now
that life is not always going to be,
nor meant to be, a straightforward path
that connects point A to point B…
life never stops inspiring me
and making me think…
I have always known that sometimes
things happen because they are meant to happen -
both the good and the bad,
both the expected and the unexpected;
however, life is constantly reminding me
that there is a lattice of interconnected
strands that bind us all to one another -
especially those of us who have worked together,
those of us who have worked alongside one another,
and those of us who worked as a team
and accomplished something because we knew
we could count on each other
no matter what had to be faced.
No one can know what is going to happen
whenever once parallel and intersectional paths
diverge after a choice is made and a decision is taken
to make a change for a reason
that makes perfect sense at a particular moment in time…
no one can truly predict what will happen in the future,
because life is not always the product
of what we want and what we think it will be…
no one is in a position to control what will happen,
nor when, because none of us have the omnipotent power
to change the course of events that may have
been set into motion decades earlier
because of the fact that the universe wishes
things to happen in a certain fashion;
however, sometimes something happens -
like meeting someone who you haven’t seen for many years,
and it is like no time has passed
because who they are
and who they have always been hasn’t changed -
and you find yourself looking at the world,
as well as at yourself and others,
and thinking to yourself that there has to be
something more to why things happen than we
could ever truly know or understand.
It is sometimes hard to believe what has happened
and how long it has been since
you were someone, somewhere, doing something,
because sometimes, somehow,
you can realise that so much has happened,
so much has changed, and so much is happening
all around us, as well as because of us and others -
which is why when you happen to be
in the same place and at the same time
as someone who you know, but someone who
you may not have seen nor heard from in a long time,
it can be such a great feeling and such a wonderful experience;
especially if you and the person you have
crossed paths with were once friends or colleagues
who share a history of memories with one another.
So much of life and time is still mysterious
to a great many of people,
because so many of the intricacies of why things happen
are not blatant and obvious unless you know
what to look for, as well as when and where;
however, I am always looking for those details
and those strands of connection that I have seen
and I feel all around me like a web -
and I am always cogent of my own perception of life
and my ability to be able to leap back in time
to where and when I used to be, and with whom I am with,
and I have had countless experiences
when I have seen someone again,
or found something again,
or I have been somewhere again,
and I have been immediately reminded
and transported back to “the good old days”.
relationships
My Poem “Capture This”
So often in my life
I have been somewhere,
with someone, as well as alone,
when I have immediately understood
that I was witnessing something
that to me looked and felt extraordinary
in some way, shape, or form -
however, it was not until I became a poet
that I knew I had the skill set
to be able to put into words
and paint a picture with language
exactly what something in particular,
or someone in particular,
meant to me at a particular moment in time…
as time has gone by, some of the words
that I once used to describe something,
or someone, that seemed instantly amazing to me
have faded from memory -
like a photograph that has been
exposed to sunlight for too long -
and I have had to contend with
the fact that nothing remains
as they used to be forever,
because nature has a way of teaching all of us
that everything and everyone
has a purpose, a meaning,
and a reason for why they should be treated
as if it they are something unrepeatable,
unique, and a treasure like that of a rare find…
my heart has never ceased to want to
allow itself to live and breathe alongside
those of other likeminded souls,
but time and time again
my heart has been broken
and has had to repair itself
because the intentions of others were able
to override my own expectations and instincts
and lead me almost over a cliff…
my gift and my connection
to the universal muse has been able to
give me visions and dreams of places,
and my interpretation of the sound
of the orchestra of the cosmos
has allowed me to understand my place
in the grand scheme of things
when it comes to the reason why I am here -
and I must have had close to a million moments
in my time when I have seen something,
heard something, felt something,
and automatically picked up the means
to be able to carry out my destiny:
my innate ability to be able to
be witness to something and know
immediately in what way
I am going to capture it.
A Journey Through Poetry #36: Divergence
This episode is a part of Mark’s “A Journey Through Poetry” – a personal reflection of his life as a poet, a writer, and a author – in which he recites a different poem from every one of his poetry collections. In this episode Mark recites his poem ‘Divergence’, from his poetry collection The Storyteller, and he gives some insight and some context into why he was inspired to write this poem in particular.
My Poem “Every Time is Different”
Sometimes the bad
can overshadow the good…
sometimes the happiest of times
can be forgotten about
because the darkness of hate
and disappointment can
make them sink beneath
the ocean of our memories
so deep that we almost feel
as if they never happened,
and were just a dream…
sometimes we focus too much on
who someone is to us in the present
that we have a hard time remembering
who someone was before -
when times were better -
because the pain of being hurt by someone
can transform the way that we see them;
heroes can become villains;
lovers can become users;
angels can become demons -
and nothing and no one can restore
the halo that once seemingly shone above
the head that now seemingly has horns…
sometimes a song that you once loved,
and used to use to share your affection for
with someone who you used to love,
you can come to hate -
because the way that a particular song
used to make you feel has changed in your mind
and in the way you feel about yourself and the world,
and you will try to make sure you never hear that song again;
but whenever you try to avoid
and forget something, or someone -
like a particular song, or a particular person -
undoubtedly that something, or that someone,
will find you and remind you that they
are still a part of you, and they always will be…
sometimes we all have to accept the fact,
and the reality, that we have no control
over what the universe will bring into our lives
and occasionally influence us with their spirit,
because that is the relationship that each of us have
with everything and everyone else
in existence, everywhere -
from the beginning to the end;
because no matter how many times
you do something, listen to something,
see someone, or hear a particular voice -
even if it is for the thousandth time -
each and every time it is always different.
My New Book – The Affair
This is a true story. This is the story of a relationship, and an account of things and events that happened, which should never have happened. This is the story of two people whose bond was doomed from the start.
This is the story of two people who were meant to meet and to fall in love with one another, but whose affair with one another would leave a lasting scar for one of them more than the other.
The story of The Affair is a cautionary tale of love, seduction, secrecy, betrayal, heartbreak, and the pitfalls of a relationship between two people who allowed their obsession with one another to grow into becoming something uncontrollable and ultimately destructive.
You can get your copy of my new book The Affair on Amazon now: here!
The Affair – Out Now
My new book The Affair is now available to buy in hardback and as an ebook from Amazon.
This is a true story. This is the story of a relationship, and an account of things and events that happened, which should never have happened. This is the story of two people whose bond was doomed from the start.
This is the story of two people who were meant to meet and to fall in love with one another, but whose affair with one another would leave a lasting scar for one of them more than the other.
The story of The Affair is a cautionary tale of love, seduction, secrecy, betrayal, heartbreak, and the pitfalls of a relationship between two people who allowed their obsession with one another to grow into becoming something uncontrollable and ultimately destructive.
You can get your copy of The Affair on Amazon in hardback and as ebook: here!
Listen to me reading Chapter One – “The Spark” on Spotify:
My Poem “Just Their Look”
No matter what anyone says,
no matter how something appears,
how someone presents themselves
matters more than people might want to admit…
even when we are young,
we all have a certain image within our mind
of how we see ourselves
and how we may want others to see us…
some people dress in a certain way
because they want to emulate the appearance
and the fashion of someone whom they might revere and idolise…
we all have our favourite clothes
that, when we wear them, give us
a feeling of comfort, confidence,
and some people take a great deal of time
and pride in selecting what they are going to wear…
some people equate a particular outfit
to a suit of armour that a medieval knight
might have worn to protect themselves -
and although the attire that modern people,
as well as soldiers, wear today
may not be as encompassing,
nor as metallic, from head to toe,
the “armour” of a suit and tie,
or the colours and badges of a uniform,
can give someone that much needed
faith in their own abilities to be able
to do what they must…
what someone wears can affect
how someone acts…
what someone wears can affect
how someone speaks
and how someone is heard…
what someone wears can affect
the perception of people;
however, appearances can be,
and generally are, deceptive,
and should be treated as only
as the surface level of something,
as well as someone -
because everything and everyone
is more than how they portray themselves to be,
and most people are more than how they appear to others,
and for some people that is
how they get through life,
that is how they protect themselves
from all that is going on around them,
and that is how they have learned
to become a part of the society
that they find themselves within…
sometimes some people choose things deliberately,
and sometimes some people choose things
without knowing why they feel drawn to them -
because some things feel obligatory,
while some things just feel natural;
and what someone wears can be a good indicator
of how someone feels about themselves,
or how they want other people to feel about them,
and then there are those who
just wear what works best for them,
and when they see themselves in a mirror
they say to themselves that no matter
where they are and who they are with
how they want to be seen is,
for better or for worse, just their look.
Coming Soon… The Affair
Disclaimer:
This is a true story. This is the story of a relationship, and an account of things and events that happened, which should never have happened.
This is the story of two people whose bond was doomed from the start.
This is the story of two people who were meant to meet and to fall in love with one another,
but whose affair with one another would leave a lasting scar for one of them more than the other.
Out October 31, 2025.
My Poem “Work Together”
Like most people in this life,
at many points throughout my life,
I have had to choose between
one direction and another…
like most people in this world,
there have been several moments,
as an adult and still while I was a child,
when I have had to take my options into account,
and make a decision about,
what path my future could look like…
like most people living on this planet -
this spinning sphere of change,
orbiting around the sun at 67,000 miles per hour -
while growing up my imagination was filled with
sights and sounds of infinite and amazing possibilities
which I might want to explore further;
however, as reality becomes more complex,
and as we are all faced with the dilemma
of having to deal with making a living,
as well as finding a source of happiness
that we can return to time and again
to sustain us through the years of struggle,
each of us has to overcome the fact
that sometimes none of us has total control
over everything that happens,
nor how fast things happen -
because, though we have plans,
the universe has a more complicated lattice
of interconnected relationships and realities
constantly interacting with one another
that it must endeavour to keep in balance.
I have been working on the concept
and the project that is me since I was a kid -
and there have been many times
when I actually thought I had figured out
what my life was supposed to be
and what it was supposed to look like;
however, like everyone who has ever lived,
every time I believed that I had found
meaning, reason, and balance in my life,
the universe would always find a way
of telling me or showing me that I was wrong
and that I should think again…
I have had times when I have been riding high
and as happy and content as could be,
and then I have been reminded that nothing
lasts longer than it is supposed to
and what remains afterwards are only
shadows and reflections of what was
that can never be repeated -
but we don’t learn the heavy truths of
why we should embrace every single moment
with every single person we meet
until we lose contact with them
and we are forced to continue
our lives without them.
Like most of the people who have searched
their entire life for their own calling,
and who want to know what they should do
when they are presented with an opportunity
to influence the outcome of their own life,
I have continuously had to make
adjustments to my perspective
on certain things, on certain people,
and on certain assumptions that I might have had -
because I am, and I have always considered myself to be,
open and empathetic to others who live
a life similar, but different, to my own -
and I have never been afraid of
seeing the other side of an argument
and trying to find a solution based up
listening, learning, and understanding,
as much as I can, about
why people do what they do.
Like most people of my generation,
I have never been more disappointed
by anything than the fact that
some people seemingly cannot find a way
to put aside all that divides them
and come to a peaceful compromise
which benefits everybody and everything -
but the problem is no matter how much
some people have they always want more;
however, I cannot help myself from hoping
that one day everyone will come to their senses
and once and for all realise that the fate
of this world of ours is not for us to decide,
nor is the destiny of the life on this planet,
because we are all just the ones who
are currently doing the best we can
and living as we see fit;
however, several tribes, families, groups, gangs,
empires, dynasties, have thought
that they had dominion over all other peoples
and life on Earth for a fraction of time
in this life of this world -
which is why, in my opinion,
we should be grateful for what we have now
but never forget that change is inevitable
and the most important thing to remember
is that we are not alone in this universe
and that our journey as a planet
will only be allowed to continue as it is,
or evolve as it must,
if it is meant to, and if we once again
do not accept that the only way
to get the best out of everything
and everyone is to live and to work together.
My Poem “If you want me, you know where to find me”
Life is a gift, an opportunity,
an experience that can only be experienced
by embracing whatever we are drawn to,
and who walks into our lives
and influences the flow of our thoughts,
feelings, emotions, and who we find ourselves
dreaming about when we didn’t expect to…
what we don’t realise is just how many
people we actually meet over the course of our lives,
because we sometimes see so many faces
that everybody becomes a blur;
however, sometimes the face of someone stays with you -
sometimes even before you find out their name -
and they change things about you
that you always thought were untouchable
and unchallenged about you…
what we don’t realise is just how many people,
over time, we lose contact with
because our shared journey with them
has naturally come to an end…
we can come to feel and to believe
that we cannot live without someone in our lives
who made us feel things from the moment
that we met them that no one else made us feel;
however, sometimes other people
have other ideas about what the definition
of “love” and “forever” might be
and over time the attention and the attitude
of certain people can shift to others
and it is as if the history that was once shared
now means nothing and is no longer
anything to focused on, nor to hold in such high regard -
and that is when relationships come to an end
and the left behind have to rebuild themselves
and their trust for others after having to suffer
through a barrage of lies…
sometimes the best way to get over someone
who hurt you in more ways than one
is to tell them that you will be alright without them
and you hope that those they burden in the future
will not be hurt by them like you have been…
personally, I used to worry too much
about what went wrong, why things ended,
and what I might have done -
but now I just walk away from those
who no longer want me in their life
with my head held high,
as I say to them with a smile and with a whisper:
“If you want me, you know where to find me”.
Mark The Poet 