IF

[Tedlark]

IF.....







IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,If you can trust yourself when
all men doubt you,But make allowance for their doubting too;If you can
wait and not be tired by waiting,Or being lied about, don't deal in
lies,Or being hated, don't give way to hating,And yet don't look too
good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;If you can think - and
not make thoughts your aim;If you can meet with Triumph and DisasterAnd
treat those two impostors just the same;If you can bear to hear the truth
you've spokenTwisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,Or watch the
things you gave your life to, broken,And stoop and build 'em up with
worn-out tools:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of
pitch-and-toss,And lose, and start again at your beginningsAnd never
breathe a word about your loss;If you can force your heart and nerve and
sinewTo serve your turn long after they are gone,And so hold on when
there is nothing in youExcept the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,' Or walk with Kings -
nor lose the common touch,if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt
you,If all men count with you, but none too much;If you can fill the
unforgiving minuteWith sixty seconds' worth of distance run,Yours is the
Earth and everything that's in it,And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my
son!

[Lucky Larry]

Tedlark,
One of my most precious memories is receiving Kipling's "If" on a birthday card from my dad on my 18th birthday. I have reread it hundreds of times in the 40+ years since to keep life in perspective. Thanks for bringing up such a great literary work.

[marie meijer]

NICE post, Ted, and what a pleasant surprise! THANK YOU! 'Gives new meaning to "something for everyone" on this site. What a cool memory for you, LL!

[Tedlark]

  Sometimes when I lose focus I will pull out a copy of this poem that my dad gave me about 35 years ago and read through it. So far this was the first time in 2011 that I did this.

[backsider]

Are you talking about Rudyard Kipling? Was he a poet?

[EDC1977]

Use Google search or Wikipedia. Instant answer