Life

Finding Inspiration In The “New Year”

/ markmkane / 3 Comments

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I’m not too sure if I’m alone in thinking this way but every single year, just days after we ring in the New Year, I feel re-energized and inspired.  Everything and anything unfortunate that occurred the year before is completely erased.  I’ve been given a clean slate where anything is possible.     

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There’s HOPE!  I can see it, I can smell it, I can taste it…it’s finally within my grasp.

A sudden rush of invincibility and unbridled optimism fuels my drive to pursue my dreams; this euphoric feeling of boundless positivity and capability is intoxicating.  I’m in open space moving at Mach 6 towards my quest in achieving EVERY dream, whether it be big or small.20172

There’s nothing that I can’t accomplish…there is no fear…no hesitation in thought or action.  My focus is razor sharp and crystal clear.  The only thought that echoes in my mind like a broken record is “YES! This is THE year! This is gonna be MY year!”  

I know that thought is so cliché, but what can I say, I’m an eternal optimist at heart.  Feeling this way makes me want to share my words of affirmation and enthusiasm with anyone and everyone around me.  That’s a good thing, right?

This wave of emotions will eventually subside as the year progresses, but I’m going to ride it for as long as I can and know wholeheartedly that I gave it my all and then some. 

Tigger

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With 2016 winding down, I ,like many others reflect on what took place in our lives and put things into perspective.  As I was doing my year end house cleaning, I stumbled upon a picture of my beloved dog “Tigger”several years removed from our lives; attached was a note that I had penned soon after his passing.

I read through it and reflected on how important he was to me and my family and wanted to share how I felt at that time with you.

“Today a part of me died,

you left a void within my heart that can never be replaced

You touched my life in ways that you could never imagine

I sit here trying to think of a word to best describe you

But no words can describe what you truly meant to me

You were my best friend for the past 18 years

and you did everything in your heart for me

You made me laugh and smile

and comforted me when I was scared

You protected me when I was asleep

and kept me company when I was alone

In your little funny ways,

you made me see what life was about

I will miss you with all my heart;

your perky ears, your jovial bark, and your gentle lick

It will be hard to face life without you by my side

Your support and love made me feel invincible

Your gift of love

was the best gift I ever received from you

For that I am most grateful

I’m so lucky and honored that you came into my life

For the rest of my life, I am in debt to you

Tigger…you taught me what love really is,

to give it and to receive it

you will never be forgotten

because you have a special place within my heart forever

Whenever I think of love or share it,

you will come to mind

you will live on in the love I give to others

Thank you Tigger,

thank you for choosing me,

thank you for being there for me

and caring with your heart.”

A Piece Of My Wish

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A piece of my heart

is all I could give

when we were alone

For you belonged to another

you were never mine to own

My love for you 

never fully shared

Just a piece of my heart

to show that I cared

If I could’ve opened my heart

I would’ve given you so much

But the key to your love

was never mine to touch

A piece of my wish

is my only gift to you whenever we’re apart

May your love live forever

may happiness be in your heart.wish1

 

 

The Countdown

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The holiday season is well underway and a lot of kids are eagerly counting down the days till Christmas.  That age of innocence is clearly apparent and I often reminisce about my own experience.  But alas, we all get older and sometimes our focus tends to gravitate toward age appropriate matters.

My kids, who are now young teenagers, reminded me of this.  Yes, of course, they still look forward to Christmas but the enthusiasm is not as vibrant as it was when they were in their single digit age.

The main thing that concerns them the most is when does Christmas vacation start and how long it will be.  They can’t wait to take a break from all that studying and let loose…or for others, just chill and do nothing.  Granted, we all hated going to school and valued those precious times away from academia.

I recalled the time when I was their exact age and fully  remembered what I was doing leading up to the start of winter recess.  Counting down the days, hours, minutes and seconds;  time ironically moves extremely slow when we’re young and somehow speeds up the older we get.  Go figure that.a8

As I was thinking about this, a short poem came to mind that kind of summed up how I felt at my children’s age and I’d like to share it.

Here I am at school today

feeling down and oh so blue

I dream of being hard at play

in the hopes it will come true

Running, skating, playing ball

is what I’d like to do

but here I am thinking – that’s all

just stuck here right at school

To dream, to dream, only to dream

waiting for school to end soon

“My God! My watch! Oh gads I’ll scream!

I can’t believe it’s only noon!!!”

 

 

 

A Time of Thanks

/ markmkane / 4 Comments

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Every time this year, like most people, I always take stock in what I’m grateful for…my family, my friends, my health, my life, so on and so forth.  But this year, with the passing of two co-workers and a couple of family members and a health scare, I am truly appreciative for what I have.

 Every day leading up to Thanksgiving, I’ve been taking stock in what I have and the people who are around me and have never been more cognizant and content with my place in life.  There are just days when I can’t help but stop myself in my tracks and smile.

 On days like this I always think “Nothing could be more perfect in my life right now.  If I could just somehow stop time and live in this moment forever, I’d be totally ecstatic.”  A sense of overwhelming joy consumes me and thank God for giving me this occasion to feel this way.thanks4

 When I was younger, I often took for granted a lot of things in my life and somehow lost sight of what it really meant to be thankful for what I had around me.  It was all about “me” and the mere fact that I had many more years ahead just made me concentrate on what might be instead of what might come to pass.thanks1

 But if I hadn’t had all those missed opportunities, mistakes and regrets then I wouldn’t come to the self-realization of how lucky I am in life. Like that saying goes, “With age, comes wisdom.”  And I learned that I needed to enjoy the here and now, accept where I am in life and recognize the people around me that where steadfast in everything I did.

Because of my newfound outlook on life, I preach to my children everyday on acknowledging what they have, to try and not be cavalier on thinking that you have all the time in the world.  Time is a commodity that needs to be relished with respect and without regrets.

A Tribute to Harold

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Although my friend has long passed, for some reason I was thinking about him today and wished that my children could’ve met him.  I wrote a poem about him that best describes what he meant to me.

We were young and so new

when we started work at the store,

learning the business fast

was really a chore

We were clumsy, awkward,

and a little bit naive,

but you put your faith in us

and made us believe

In time we grew smart

with each passing day,

you lent us your wisdom

through the stories you say

In you we saw a role model

with all the qualities of the heart,

you were generous, kind, humorous, helpful

to all of us from the start

Though you left us way too early

your traits in us were sown

Let one message come to mind

and let it be known

We wish you the best in Heaven

in whatever you do,

We give you our love

and will surely miss you

So here is our gift,

so special, so true,

It symbolizes our love

to a friend we found in you.

What Is Love?

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Some write songs

of love old and new,

others write books

of love so grand and true

But songs and books cannot describe

the real true meaning of love,

a love that comes from inside

From within the heart

a certain feeling grows,

it cannot be hid

for through your action it shows

It’s seen in the eyes 

of both the young and old

It’s shown through their smile

that’s pure and gold

If everyone had one wish

they’d probably say,

“Love stay with me forever,

never go away.”

 

Our “Special” Gift

/ markmkane / 9 Comments

I always marvel at the fact that we, as writers, can conjure up practically anything we desire with our writing.  We come up with the most creative stories, the most enticing screenplays, the most eloquent poetry and the most humorous prose.

 No two stories, poems, blog posts or screenplays are alike.  Yes they may have the same idea or premise but the way it is executed on page and presented to the reader is very individualistic.  Our inner voice comes through our choice of words and how we arrange them and the reader is fortunate to choose which voice he or she best relates to.aa8

 We really have a gift if you think about it and we choose to share it with others in hopes of educating them, inspiring them, entertaining them and even provoking critical thought among them.  Our passion has no bounds.

 The world, our experiences, our family, our friends and random conversation overheard is our muse.  We get a spark and it gestates in our subconscious mind until it is ready to flow freely onto our computer screens.

AND some of the stuff that we come up with is totally mind-boggling.  As writers, we choose to ignore the plausible and go with what our inner voice is screaming at us to write.  Just imagine if we put limitations on ourselves and our creativity, you know how boring our concepts would be.

 Every day I thank God that I’m able to write something that at least someone, somewhere would enjoy reading.  I might not be the most creative, eloquent or concise writer but I write how I feel and that’s all that truly matters; I think that this is the common thread that is prevalent among all of my fellow peers.

 Writing is our craft, our voice…and our desire to share it with the world regardless of the outcome is admirable don’t you think. aa4

 When I started as a writer, I came across a poem that really spoke to me.  Unfortunately it was written anonymously and I lost my only copy of it.  But I remembered a portion from that particular poem that I took to heart and I want to share it with all of my fellow writing colleagues – all you screenwriters, poets, bloggers, story tellers:

 “Writing is a gift

given to few,

Don’t ever give it up

or you won’t be you”

How Time Flies

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Today as I am writing this blog, I am in complete shock at the fact that my daughter is turning 16 years old today (AND also at the fact that I’m someone’s dad).  I truly cannot believe that my first born child is slowly growing into a young woman.  This is the very child whom I cradled in my arms in the wee morning hours trying to get her to sleep. 

Yes I know that it’s inevitable, but I’m amazed at how time flew by.  It’s as if I’m in a water tube slide and the laws of physics temporarily sped up; all the events that I shared with my daughter were merely subconscious flashbacks appearing before my eyes as I descended to the bottom. 

 “WOW!!!” is all I can say.  To see this strong, intelligent and ambitious girl attaining goals and dreams that I would never dare to do is completely mind-boggling…maybe I’m awed at that fact that I share DNA genes with her.  Every day I am surprised at what she is capable of doing and am truly proud.

 I guess the whole point of this post is just me reflecting on the past and how I relish my experiences as a parent with my children.  I’m not the best parent in the world but I’m definitely not the worst by any means.  I’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way and grew as a person, but I feel like I did an okay job.

 I look forward toward the future and am anxiously awaiting for my daughter and son to astonish me, whether it be something big or something small.  It is because of them that I am inspired to do things and explore things that will surprise them as well.  Hopefully along the way I can slow down time and defy the laws of physics to savor every moment.

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All That You Are

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Are you the answer to my question?

Could it be you my love?

It makes me crazy wondering

if it’s you that’s my true love?

You give so much of yourself

to remind me that love is near

To search the feeling within my heart

will make it crystal clear

You’re the person, my answer,

my one and only love

You’re a gift sent special to me

straight from heaven above

To find an answer to true love

I needn’t go to far

For your heart reflects true love within and…

All that you are

Your sweet, caring smile

your warm and honest face

the caress of your loving hands

your soft and gentle embrace

You opened up my eyes

and turned my life around

You made me see true beauty,

showed me new joys abound

All because of you-

my dreams are close at hand,

my life is much more clearer,

my love is oh so grand

The warmth and kindness that you gave,

the strength you instilled in me,

your heart and soul is with me now-

with you I’ll always be

I’ve never known anyone

who could do these things to me,

You’ve shown me what love’s all about

you’ve taught the blind to see

The reflection in your eyes show me

that together, our love will go far,

for love reflects true beauty and…

All that you are

You’re a gift that’s truly priceless,

an angel from above

a heart filled with true beauty,

with an endless supply of love

All that you are,

all because of you,

my love has found a special place

my dearest, I love you.