Mark Hastings

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Hi there! I’m Mark Hastings! I’m afraid I am not someone who plays an instrument, or sings; however, what I am, what I love, and what I one day hope to be, is a poet and dreamer who can move the world with his poetry. I haven’t always been a poet, and while growing up I was not much of a writer; however, I was always a boy that saw the world to be that much brighter; I always looked upon friends more optimistically than they saw themselves; and when I dreamed I dreamed of starships, far-off worlds, and elves; I watched TV, listened to music, and read the great works of the best- Star Trek, John Lennon, Shakespeare, Tolkien- with enraptured interest. While growing up I loved to draw, paint, and I loved to use vibrant colours; I loved works of art that resonanted and harmonized with what naturally occurs; however, when it came to rhymes, poets, poems, and poetry, I always fell-short- I suppose, in retropsect, it was a fear of misunderstanding that I could not thwart. However, cometh the muse, cometh the inspiration, cometh the poetry, cometh the poet- and when you are blessed with a such a gift you never fail to feel, love, and know it.

Check out my poetry blog 'Poeta universalis' on Wordpress; follow me on Twitter; Like me on Facebook; watch and listen to me on You Tube and Vimeo:

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My Poem ‘Memorial’ (by PoetaUniversalis)

Ten years ago, I literally watched people die right before my eyes
and I couldn’t do a thing about it, I couldn’t save them-
on September 11th, 2001, I, like billions of people all around the world,
watched almost three-thousand lights be extinguished in an instant,
the like of which we will never see again.
I could not believe what I was seeing at first-
I could not put into words the horror that I felt, the horror that I saw-
and then when the World Trade Center began to fall
I just remember putting my right hand to my chest,
as if I were having a heart attack,
and thinking that the entire world had gone mad,
that the whole world was now at war.
I will never get over what I saw on that Tuesday afternoon;
I will never understand why someone, anyone,
would freely choose to impact the world in such a deplorable way;
I will never again look at the stunning New York City skyline
and not think of that day.
If I could I would carry a picture of everyone who died on September 11th-
in New York City, at the Pentagon, on Flight 11, on Flight 175, on Flight 77,
and those who lost their lives heroically on Flight 93-
if I could I would look at every face, every day,
and send them and their family my love, and the gift of my poetry.
To those who died on September 11th, 2001,
this poem is for you.
To those who carry the memory and relive that Tuesday
whenever they look at themselves in the mirror,
this poem is for you.
To those who observed, who were touched,
who will never forget September 11th, 2001-
this poem is for you.