Introduction
The book Noise & Peace in the Pages of Heaven is a poetry book. Most of these poems tell small stories or tales. The book is split into three consecutive chapters: Noise, Peace, and Heaven. The Noise poems are poems that bothered me spiritually, mentally, and/or physically. Writing these moments into poems soothed me and helped me. The Peace poems are the poems that came from moments that my spirit, mind and/or body were sound at peace. These poems helped me relax and smile. Knowing the Noise did not have me bound. The Heaven poems are the poems that showed me promise. They made me smile, laugh, and rejoice. Although, Noise and Peace were a constant variable in my life, writing them out allowed me to not only help myself but also others. We all have Noise in our lives just as we all have peace. However, it’s when we allow those two to boost us to Heaven that we are truly thankful. Enjoy!
About the Author
Marcus T. Bland was born in Dinwiddie, Va. He is from a small neighborhood called: Stony
Springs. Marcus Bland is the second and youngest son of Australia Bland-Bolling. His older brother is
Theodore Bland Jr. It was his family that first noticed Marcus had an incredible gift for writing. It was
from that support that Marcus made his first efforts to write. He started out at eight years of age writing
small comics that helped him and his friends deal with peer pressure and negative problems in their
environments. Marcus also went on to write poems for birthdays, Valentine’s Day, anniversaries and
funerals. Marcus never charged for his services and only asked for a simple smile when the reader
finished reading a poem. Marcus was soon blessed by a high school teacher of his who selected one of
his poems to be considered for publication. His poem was entitled: My Son, My Child, My Dream. The
poem made it to publication although other poets from other schools around the state also had poems
that were in friendly competition. After this publication, the local paper recognized Marcus as a student
with a gift and the Dinwiddie School Board also recognized Marcus as a student leader in the
Community. Marcus went on to college his gift was noticed by many of the professional staff members.
They requested him to do programs and displayed his poetry on the walls of their department. Marcus
continues to attend Virginia State University working on completing his Masters in Counseling
Education.