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| Rudyard Kipling |
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 Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted 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 wornout 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 beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except 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 minute
With 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!
-- Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling was aged 30 when he wrote his famous poem in 1895. About 80 years later, I can remember my Grandfather reciting Kipling's poem to me when I was a young teen. Granddad was passing some wisdom along to me: just 15 little traits to master on the path to manhood, that's all...
Of course, the traits are not so easily mastered. The lesson I took away is that life is a struggle to fulfill lofty ambitions.
In response, I sketched a kid standing in front of a 40-foot high sculpture of the letters I and F, with the caption: "Now, that's a Mighty Big IF."
"That's a mighty big IF." was my Grandfather's second favorite comeback. The only thing I recall hearing him say more often: "Measure Twice, Cut Once."
Now that I am getting a little older myself and my own kids are in their teens, I understand that my Granddad was not just passing along some words of wisdom. He knew his struggle would not last forever. He was passing along his own hopes and dreams to future generations.
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| Rudyard Kipling |
Kipling was relatively young when he wrote If... Look how wistful and wizened he appears in this image from later in his life.
The world seems so limitless when we are kids....
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| "If" as a word cloud http://www.wordle.net/create. Interestingly, common words are automatically excluded. No ands, buts, or ... ifs. |
But there is an option on the 'Language' menu of Wordle that says, "do not remove common words". If you do so, 'you' is still larger than 'if'.
ReplyDelete(can't find a way to paste the image file I created here to show you).
Hey there, Anon. Thanks for the tip. I'll play with it and post the results.
ReplyDeleteI like poems and prayers that provide guideline to becoming a better person through different perspectives. It seems Kipling’s poem is about “if you do this for yourself, then you will master that.”
ReplyDeleteOne of my most favorite prayers is the prayer of Saint Francis.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
The prayer, to me, is about “if you do this for others, you will receive that.” I can’t help wonder if you put all the traits from both, would it make a whole self?
QofT, I like that poem and your comments very much. Would you like to be a guest contributor and repost this on the home page? Seems a shame to hide it in the comments...
ReplyDeleteYou can certainly repost or post a spin off post if you see fit; however, I thought the combination of the two poems and the comment were fitting here and that the purpose of the comments was to spark dialog between the blogger and its readers. I am interested in hearing what your thoughts are regarding the tie between the two. Certainly the Saint Francis prayer was written long before the Yipling poem but I think there are similarities. Also, I wonder if these two poems could be geared for a gender specific audience. Are there more do go poems out their similar to these? Just wondering oh wise one.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, is there a way you can notify the comment giver(s) if you post a response or a new comment to the original post?
Q of T:
DeleteI divided your comment into sections to simplify responding, and then added my responses to the end of each section.
1. You can certainly repost or post a spin off post if you see fit; however, I thought the combination of the two poems and the comment were fitting here.
DeleteI actually started a post in which the two poems were presented side by side, in columns, and at the bottom I added comments comparing and contrasting the two. I stopped when it started feeling too much like work!
2. [I thought] that the purpose of the comments was to spark dialog between the blogger and its readers. I am interested in hearing what your thoughts are regarding the tie between the two.
DeleteYou are right, gentle reader, I have pleaded for interaction in the comments, and then, when you offered it, I did not engage you in the manner I asked for and you expected. I was moved by your comment and immediately thought to elevate it to the level of a new blog post. That way, it would not be buried in the comments... like this... Alas, my big plans did not materialize, and in hindsight I admit it would have been better to reply more quickly. Sometimes less is indeed more!
3. Certainly the Saint Francis prayer was written long before the [K]ipling poem but I think there are similarities.
DeleteDo go on...
4. Also, I wonder if these two poems could be geared for a gender specific audience.
DeleteAbsolutely, and great idea! I related how my Grandfather recited Kipling's poem to me when I was a lad. I have daughters, and I can easily imagine reciting a version of this poem to them. The poem works best when read by someone the listener perceives as wise. My daughters no longer think I am perfect, and do not yet think I am wise. Maybe when / if they have children, I'll be able to share Kipling's insights with them, boys or girls.
5. Are there more [do good, be better] poems out [there] similar to these? Just wondering oh wise one.
DeleteHuman aspiration is one of the most powerful motives for song and poetry. There are tons. I like "If..." for sentimental reasons, but there are so many aspirational poems and songs out there. I find Mark Nepo's book to be filled with honest expressions of the full range of human emotions, to include "go good, be better."
Do you have any other favorites you'd like to share?
6. [Is] there a way you can notify the comment giver(s) if you post a response or a new comment to the original post?
DeleteIf I am not mistaken, readers may subscribe to this blog and receive emails when there are new posts and replies to their comments. Counting this reply, you should have just received seven emails!
* correction - replace "do go" with "do good, be better" in the "Are there more..." sentence.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I wonder if today's generation values these traits or which generation values them more? Which of these traits holds greater weight? Please throw these questions into the mix too. So many questions...