Tag Archives: New Year

A Music Video for Heavenly Light

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As promised, here is the second music video from my first album, this time for the titular track, Heavenly Light. May it encourage you and help to keep things in perspective in all your daily struggles. It seems especially appropriate at this time of year, traditionally a time when we look back and seek to learn from our mistakes as well as looking forward to a new year and all the promises of new beginnings that it holds. (Both English and Czech subtitles are available)

The lyrics are:

The world loves the shadows,
And living in fear;
Corrupting its fellows,
More brazen each year.

Devouring its seed corn
to put on a show;
Regarding with deep scorn
All those who don’t know.

But I choose to follow
Your heavenly light;
Despite all my sorrows,
I’ll stand up and fight

For things that are beautiful,
The Good and the true;
Since everything wonderful
Points right back to You.

Grant these frail bones strength enough
To persevere when the road gets rough,
So there’s purpose in my current pain;
I won’t live in vain.

When my time here’s done and I see Your face,
I’ll be welcomed by Your warm embrace,
I’ll have kept the faith and run the race,
And at last I’ll be home.

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Lyrics, melody, arrangement, vocals, audio mixing, and VST instrument programming by Ben Zwycky in Reaper using virtual instruments from Orchestral Tools and Spitfire Audio, and video editing in Hit Film Pro 13 using stock footage and images from Pixabay and videvo.

The Greatest of These

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As we approach the end of an eventful year, and the start of a new that promises a number of big things in the near future, I could make the standard wish to you all of success, health and comfort, but I thought I’d post a little reminder of what is most important of all:

The Greatest of These

There is no force upon the earth
That can outweigh the gift of love;
No wealth or situation
That can outbid its worth;

No jewel in all its glory
No title, honour, place
That can outshine the smile that spreads
Across your loved one’s face.

While victories are powerful joys
And justice plays its part
None can match devotion
From an honest human heart.

So dance and laugh and celebrate,
Savour and appreciate,
Stand, salute, commemorate
Console and commiserate
With those you choose to love.

An Eventful Time

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I have been somewhat snowed under with work, so haven’t written a new year’s poem this year. I would like to take this opportunity to look back on the past solar cycle.

 

This year has seen a lot of changes in my writing career, though it still feels like it’s just the beginning. In this year alone, the number of books I’m listed as an author of at amazon has tripled from 3 to 9 (though seven of that total are Sci Phi Journal instalments of Beyond the Mist), I’m now officially an editor of the journal and a regular contributor to superversivesf, which has put me in contact with a number of highly talented writers who treat me as a peer, which still feels odd to me. I’ve released a poetry collection and am well on the way to preparing another (though I think it still needs a few more poems, so that will probably be ready around the end of March), and have had a poem published by the society of Classical poets (we’ll see how I did in their contest at the end of January).

 

Looking forward, Sci Phi Journal is transitioning to its new format on the 4th of January, where I have an article appearing in January as well as continuing as an editor and Beyond the Mist is about to be released as a standalone novel, with a foreword by the ever awesome John C. Wright. The scheduled release date for that is the 7th of January.

 

Beyond that, who knows what lies in store?

New Year

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A calendar completes its course, it’s cycle ends this day,

People see this as a chance to live a different way.

But opportunities for transformation come each hour,

Not just when fireworks fly and great bells ring from every tower.

 

Every waking moment we have space to turn around

Reevaluate our goals and aim for higher ground

Through willpower freer than the chains of our own circumstance,

We can change the style and aims of our own journey’s dance.

 

Repentance quite literally means that you change your mind;

Transform the way you think and value every end and kind.

This precious gift from upon high to reverse our decay

And key to free us from the debt we never could repay.