Mark Hastings

My Poem: ‘Two People’

Two people in a room-
one of the most simple,
and one of the most complex,
moments that you can have in a day;
two people in a room
is also one of the most precious and special things that can happen,
and one that should never be thrown away.

Two people in a room-
a boyfriend, a girlfriend,
a life-long partner, a friend;
a brother and a sister, who are like two bookends-
you can never underestimate how important those times are,
because they are the moments that you miss the most
when things come to an end.

I have had the most inspiring and life-redefining epiphanies
when it has just been me and someone else-
because they are the moments when you can truly listen,
and focus on another persons world above all else.

If I have something to say to someone,
I would much rather say it one-to-one-
to me it means more, and it can never be over- or under-done.

You can fall in love for a life-time
after only a minute shared with someone
whom you may never have met before-
two people, unmoved and unconcerned by time,
who only have eyes and words for each-other-
and who are never looking at the clock, or at the door.

Two people is where all human life starts;
two people can be the beginning of a new heart that beats,
or the echo of a thousand laughs.
In the past, I have been talking to someone so intently
that I have completely forgotten that we were in a crowded room-
in a club, in a pub, in an office, in the street-
as if we two were self-contained and alone
within our own personal womb.

I love getting together with a lot of people-
sharing ideas, stories, moments of life-
because those memories are always amazing,
energizing, and recognizable;
however, there is just something electric, phenomenal,
beautiful, and fateful, about a room,
and two people.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘Naturally’

Don’t try to be someone you know you are not,
don’t fixate on the opinions of others-
when in doubt, clear your mind, take in a breath,
take a look in the mirror at your own “mugshot”,
and remember back to the days of your favourite summer.

Whether you are a writer, a DJ, a musician,
a decorator, an actor, or a doctor-
whether you have just picked up a pen, a mixer,
an instrument, a muse, or a passion-
if what you do comes naturally to you,
then there is no reason why you cannot go far.

As human beings, every one of us has this empowering,
and sometimes overpowering, need to share what we thrive at doing-
even as children, we create something
and instantly want to show everyone what we have done,
and even at such a young age
that one creation can be a sign and an indication
as to the direction that we are going.

The mind of a child is the most creative, amazing, unbounded,
paradise of freedom on Earth-
from day one, a child is learning and feeling exponentially-
every day is a brand new day, every morning is like a rebirth.

When we are struggling in our daily lives,
the best advice anyone can give you
is to simply go back to basics:
What do you want to say? What do you want to do?
How can you make your mark without any tricks?

Always follow your first thought and see where it leads,
even if what you find is a dead-end-
you can always be sure that the journey you took to get there
is what you really needed.

You can be whomever you want to be,
but when all is said and done
who you are, and who you will always be,
will forever remind you
in the memory of your favourite summer sun.

If you are craving for inspiration,
you feel like you can’t say what you want to say,
and you are thinking that your next great creative act
may be your finale-
think back to when you were a kid,
when the days seemed endless,
when there was no pretense between you and the world,
and when whatever you did
was just what came naturally.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘Black’

We live in the most self-expressive,
free to believe, free to create, age of global-sufficiency,
that the world has ever known-
where freedom and truth are king and queen,
without the need of a throne.

We no longer all need to be wired-in,
our words and our thoughts
can now travel instantly through the air-
every wall has a door, and anyone can go anywhere.
That is not an illusion, that is fact;
you own what you say-
there is no need for a contract.

Everyone knows that their words and their actions
have consequences all over the world- how could they not?
People are not as ill-informed
as they would like others to believe they are-
everyone knows the difference between what is right and what is wrong,
otherwise everything would happen in the light
and not in the dark.

If we don’t have the freedom to use, voice, remix,
reinterpret, and express, ourselves
in all the ways and means that we are blessed to be able to do,
then I think that that is only the start
of splitting the Earth in-two.

Freedom is the one thing in life
that no one now, in the past, or in the future,
would ever want to give-up, and forever do without;
and if there is one way to show how much freedom means to everyone,
that we want to move forward, and not back,
then I can think of no other recourse
but to turn-off the lights,
and go to black.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘The Epiphany’

I have changed so much,
more so than I ever truly realized;
I am not myself anymore,
in ways that I can no longer disguise.
What has changed? Who am I, if I am not myself?
And, why do I feel as if I cannot change things back?
Why do I feel as if I have lost my way
and that life has covered-over my tracks?

I used to be content in myself,
and untroubled by the intentions of others;
however, I now believe that my focus has shifted
away from what I want, to what it is that everyone else prefers.

Have I been lying this whole time?
If that is the case, then that was not my intention-
things were definitely simpler when I didn’t feel like the technology,
as well as the inventor of the invention.

I feel like I have become a part of the crowd,
where before I was the solo member of my own band;
a sunken island that has been swallowed by the sea,
when all I ever wanted to be was an untainted, free,
oasis of untouched land.

Change can be the best things ever,
putting a spring in your stride can make you feel amazing-
I regularly pray at the altar of variety,
but I sometimes think that things seemed more special
when I was just a boy who was stargazing.

I followed a shooting-star one night,
and from that inspiring evening to now
I have no recollection of the words and the events in-between-
I feel like I have just returned home
from living in the wilderness with no knowledge of where I have been.

How much of who I was remains?
How many traits of who I always wanted to be still live on in me, if any?
I may not be able to turn back the clock, and reset what has happened,
but I can save a part of myself- this realization
that was born on the epiphany.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘Today’

This morning is the start of a new day,
a new poem, a new sky, a new light-
this morning is blue-sky blessed,
cold, beautiful, and bright.
This morning I turned my iPod on,
selected my favourite song,
and sung along to the lyrics
that are always at the foundation
of a great new day-
every song I listen to,
from the first to the last,
tap into my source spark,
make me feel as light as a feather,
and take me away.
I have a cup of tea,
I get dressed for the day,
and then I take my tea, my music,
and my poetry with me-
I set-out into the new morning,
accompanied by the transcendent voice of Kirsty Hawkshaw
singing ‘A Million Stars’, to the epic beats of BT.
I brave the cold and the ice,
warmed through-and-through by my coat, my scarf,
and by my hope to be inspired by all that I see;
I walk the paths, through the gates, over hills, and through trees;
I stand in the middle of my favourite forest-
alone, and inspired by every second,
as I watch my breath begin to freeze.

Just after noon, I return home-
check my emails, log-on to Facebook,
and tweet my friends, and followers, from my phone;
I sit down, and begin reading another chapter
of the magnificent ‘Warhorse’ by Michael Morpurgo-
I still cannot believe that I had never heard, or read,
this beautiful book until now,
because I love everything about it:
the characters, the emotional resonance, and its amazing flow.
In the afternoon sun,
I stand outside my house,
taking in the world around me,
and sensing the aroma of a fire burning
in the distance on the air-
the smell is so intoxicating to me,
so much so that I imagine that I am standing by a roaring fire,
hypnotized by the heat and the flames,
alone, in the middle of nowhere.

At night,
I gaze at the constellation of Orion from my garden,
whilst listening to the amazing ‘Saltwater’ by Chicane-
and I am moved to tears by the staggering beauty of everything,
as the wonderful gift of life overcomes me
and can no longer be contained within my brain.

Friday, the 13th of January, 2012,
was a day filled with so many more wonderful gifts of life
that I experienced than I could accurately, poetically, delve;
however, it was a day when an idea became a reality
that in my eyes reverberated throughout the entire Milky Way-
and this is that idea,
this is my poem,
this was, and this is,
Today.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘FTL’

Ever since I was a boy
I have traveled to far-away- blue-sky, red-sky,
glittering diamond-sky- distant worlds;
where Christmas trees sing Christmas songs as they sway in the wind,
and stars can be picked from a dark ocean sky as if they were pearls.

At sunrise, and at sunset,
at midday, and at midnight,
I travel at the speed of thought
to anywhere in the universe that I can imagine-
propelled only by myself, life, and light.

I have ventured through clouds of gold, to seas of crystal;
I have danced at the event-horizon of a black hole in space-
dived inside, and found myself somewhere that I can only describe
as like lying in a bed made entirely out of wool.

I have spoken languages that are so beautiful when expressed
they form thoughts and dreams of divine euphoria in your mind,
and make you feel like you have a sun burning in your chest.

I require no rocket,
I have no need for a time-machine,
an energy-source of unlimited power,
or an omnipotent visitor from an undisclosed dimension-
to go where I want to go,
I need only to believe, and to see,
everything projected from my inner-light,
free of my own apprehension,
and silently sing a memory to ascension.

Even though at one time or another in my life
I have felt adrift, unloved, blinded, and alone,
I always knew, and I know now,
that someone is always there for me to go to, to talk to,
to offer me refuge, and a home.

I know that no matter where, or when, I am, I can go anywhere, anytime,
I need only to see the place with all my sight-
fortunately that is never a problem,
because when I travel, I always travel faster than light.

(Source: poetofthesphere.com)

My Poem: ‘The Second’

The second day, the second language,
the second thought, the seconds between the minutes,
matter more in life than the firsts-
more so than anyone realizes, recognizes, or every really admits.

The first is the beginning, but the second is the real start;
the first is always amazing, because it is something new,
however the second is what will carry you forward,
and keep to the beat of your heart.

Everyone has a second language, that is learned, but sometimes overlooked,
but which is of greater significance than your native-tongue-
it is a truth that we perhaps take for granted as we get older,
but I know that it is a gift that is not lost on the young.

To give something a second thought
denotes that what you are considering is important,
and not to be dismissed on first look-
their are some who read something once,
watch, or go somewhere for the first time, and then never again,
and missing something vital that they may see
if they gave something another look.

Every second of every day is so flitting, and short-lived,
they are gone before you know it, and pass-bye faster
than the blink of an eye;
but they are moments to collectively remember-
because that way they out-live those that made them,
and they will never die.

It is impossible to remember everything in life,
our memories are like light that has passed through a diamond;
however, I value with all that I am, every day, every year,
everything that has ever happened, to the second.

(Source: poetauniversalis.wordpress.com)

My Poem: ‘Heaven: 2011’

I believe that heaven is a place
where the instant that you arrive you never want to leave again,
I believe that heaven is a poem
that even the greatest poet of all-time
would find it hard to describe
with the power of words, paper, and a pen.
I believe that heaven is a time
when you can look around at your life, your home, and at yourself in the mirror,
think back to the year before, on this exact day,
and know within yourself that you are a better person for the events of that year,
and that your path in life is that much more clearer.
In the year that I say goodbye to
I leave behind a part of myself
in the minds and in the hearts of whom I have met,
I say goodbye with a smile, and with memories that I will never forget.

2011 was a year of life-changing inspiration,
and of reality-shattering discovery;
2011 was a year of new lives, new loves, new sights,
and of epic people, and timeless beauty.
2011 was the year when everything changed for me;
2011 was, and will forever be to me,
the year when I uncovered the secrets
and the meaning of the future of my life-
and that is indescribable;
but I can say without hesitation that what is to come
makes me feel so happy.

The promise of tomorrow is also the promise of an entirely new year-
a new year that fills me with hope, anticipation, rejuvenation,
and inspiration, just at the thought at what it is that draws near.
I am not a psychic, or a fortune-teller, I am but an eternal optimist
who has passed through shadows in his life
to arrive at a place where he feels inspired and content-
a place that I would not hesitate to call my very own heaven,
and I know that the year to come will enlighten
and enrich my life like never before;
but I just wanted to say goodbye to a phenomenal 2011.

Happy New Year!

(Source: poetauniversalis.wordpress.com)

My Poem: ‘What I’ve always wanted’

The gathering together of family and friends, today on Christmas Day,
is an amazing occasion that I look forward to all year long-
and the reason why I do is what I would like to convey.

It begins, as it did when I was a kid,
the instant that I wake-up before the sunrise on Christmas morning-
the excitement in my stomach, the sparkle and the anticipation in my eyes-
the twinkling Christmas tree lights;
the first burst of sunlight, that needs no forewarning.

The opening of cards,
the sending of Merry Christmas messages,
the ripping of wrapping paper,
and the unveiling of amazing and thoughtful packages,
fills me with so much energy and joy,
and the smiles on peoples faces are worth a thousand memories;
and I love the fact that this same amazing custom will be repeated
all over the world, in all languages,
as it has been in one way or another for countless centuries.

Christmas dinner with my family has always been a fun,
sumptuous, mouth-watering, senses-overwhelming,
cracker-cracking, stomach-filling, affair-
with paper crowns and Santa hats that no one ever does not want to wear.

At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, every year on December 25th,
I and my family watch The Queen give her televised Christmas message-
a tradition so entwined with this day and this time of the year
it has become a part of the Great British myth.

The time that my family and I spend together on Christmas Day
is always special, wonderful, and precious-
and I try to remember every detail of the day,
and I never take it lightly, or for granted-
because spending as much time with all of the people in my life,
who make up my life,
is what I have always wanted.

(Source: poetauniversalis.wordpress.com)

My Poem: ‘Back to the Spark’

When we are a child we are afraid of the dark,
and even as some people grow older
they cannot sleep without a light to assure them and to guide them,
even if that light is but a spark.
I used to be afraid of the dark,
I used to drift off to sleep while mesmerized
by the glow of a light-bulb underneath my bedroom door,
I used to look into the shadows
and make myself believe that I could see a face,
I used to listen to every sound
and wonder what it was that was walking unseen over my floor.
And then, one day all the lights went out,
my bedroom and my entire house were now only being lit
my the majestic light of the moon-
I remember my Mum coming up to my room and telling me by candle-light
that “everything was going to be ok, the light will be back on soon”-
and the most amazing thing happened afterwards:
everything was ok, the power came back on,
and with the light, and at no time that night, since then, or now,
have I not believed, without fear, that everything is going to be all right,
its all just a question of when and how.

Lights go out everyday,
but they always return to life brighter than they were before-
day, or night, whether in the sky, or right beside us on Earth,
seen, or unseen, a spark is always there, that no one can ever obscure.

I have found great solace in darkness
broken only by the light of hope within my dreams;
I have felt powerful inspiration from the assured smile of a friend
telling me that everything is not always as it seems;
I have been in a sea of uncertainty,
diving below the surface, before coming face to face with a fast-moving shark-
unmoving, unafraid, and unlimited,
I raised my head to look at the glittering sunlight above,
I closed my eyes, and I went back to the spark.

(Source: poetauniversalis.wordpress.com)

My Poem: ‘Hello, beautiful’

Call it fate, call it destiny, call it divine-intervention, call it a sign-
since the moment you smiled at me, thousands of miles away,
the world has become more beautiful everyday since,
and even now your beauty continues to occupy my mind.

Our remarkable world changes everyday,
but what makes me feel alive, what thrives,
and what only intensifies, every second and in every way,
is my love for you, my smile for you, what I feel about you,
the hope, the poetry, and the happiness, in my heart that never goes away.

If all the world could only feel how I feel,
I believe everyone would choose to live in peace;
if all the world were to know you, to see you, to be inspired by you,
I believe everyone would instantly fall in love with you,
and all fighting on Earth would forever cease.

I cannot help but be inspired by you,
I cannot help but want to reach out to you,
and to emphasize to you in no false tongue,
and in no word of a lie,
that you are more to me than amazing,
that you are more to me than a flash of light that appears in someones eye-
you mean more to the worlds song than can ever be imagined or envisioned,
you are the personification of Earths phenomenal and natural,
awe-inspiring, perfection, and the reason why when I look at you
I am constantly stunned.

When I tell you that you are beautiful,
believe me when I say that I have seen unbelievable sights,
and acts of extraordinary beauty, in my life that I will never forget,
and for which I will always feel blissful;
but, to me, beauty is more than a word,
beauty is more than something that can be seen, heard, felt, and expressed-
to me, beauty is You, and only You,
and I just wanted to say to you:
hello, beautiful!

(Source: poetauniversalis.wordpress.com)