As I was driving to Starbucks this morning, I was listening to NPR as I often do. Garrison Keillor does this short piece called Writer’s Almanac and reads a piece of poetry. This morning’s poem was very familiar — if you have graduated from high school or college, chances are you have received a card with this poem on it. It is called “If” by Rudyard Kipling. I had to memorize this poem in high school English class at one point and as Garrison read it, I found myself reciting it along with him. It’s become a Hallmark cliché in some aspects, but I don’t think that diminishes the truth of it.
If — Rudyard Kipling
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 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 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!
A Choice of Kipling’s Verse (1943)
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/175772
That’s a pretty powerful poem, when you really take it all apart. It’s about character. It’s about having the fruit of the spirit — common sense, patience, truth, hope, self control, perseverance, virtue, honesty and humility — and the rewards that come from living such a life. The person who does these things, Kipling says, will be a true man. It’s a mark of manhood to be able to push through when you think there is no way to continue. It takes character to stand when someone has twisted your words into saying something you never did. Manhood is picking up the broken pieces of something you worked a long time at and rebuild it. This is about servanthood — where sometimes you feel like there is nothing left and you are still there because the will inside of you says, “No, don’t give up, you are not done yet.” Character is when you can stand in front of crowds or cameras and bend the ears of powerful and influential folks yet remain humble and grounded.
All of this is what The Lord is working in us — character. We learn it by dealing with the stuff of life. The daily challenges that ask us the question that Apostle Paul answered so well: How then shall we live? His advice — “See that you walk carefully! Not as fools but as wise. Use your time wisely and make the most of every opportunity for the days ahead are evil.” The character that is being worked in us through some of these situations is exactly what causes us to become men and women of maturity, stability, and humility. It’s like that movie, Evan Almighty, when “God” says, “Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If he prayed for courage, does God give him courage, or does he give him opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for the family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other?” It’s a valid point — James said it in the first chapter when he stated that when we are in the midst of trials, consider it joy because those trial are working patience in us! In other words, your character is being developed. Is any of this easy? No way! Like the poem says, if you are lied about or hated and still maintain your identity and have the ability to walk on despite that, that is character development right there. Because everything in us wants to respond back. This is what is meant by giving up our rights — the right to be heard, the right to have the last word, the right to be right, the right to an opinion. When we learn this, we learn humility and meekness.
“Meekness is not weakness; it is power under control. As the writer of Proverbs says, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city” (16:32). In contrast, the individual who is not gentle is likened to “a city that is broken into and without walls” (Proverbs 25:28)…. And don’t equate gentleness with cowardice, lack of conviction, or mere human niceness. It’s a virtue that draws courage, strength, conviction, and a good disposition from God, not from self-centered human resources” (John MacArthur).
If… I choose to live like this, I will become a man of character. If I choose to reject the impulses to strike back when I am lied about or hated or to victimize myself when I lose it all because of a bad risk taken; when I am thrust into the spotlight and remain humble; when I keep my common sense when everyone around me has lost theirs; then I am well on my way to developing true character and becoming like Christ — a man of meekness. This is the Sermon on the Mount at it’s core because all of this is the Constitution of the Kingdom. How then shall I live? I think my path is clear!
This is an article that makes you think “never thought of that!”
IMHO you’ve got the right answer!
Yup, that should defo do the trick!
This info is the cat’s pajamas!
Cheers pal. I do appreciate the writing.
This is a neat summary. Thanks for sharing!
IJWTS wow! Why can’t I think of things like that?
Most of whatever you mention happens to be astonishingly appropriate and that makes me wonder the reason why I hadn’t looked at this in this light previously. This piece really did turn the light on for me personally as far as this particular topic goes. Nevertheless at this time there is 1 factor I am not too cozy with so whilst I make an effort to reconcile that with the main theme of the issue, permit me see exactly what the rest of your subscribers have to say.Nicely done.
Prouve le Homais! Sert toi de la lâcheté des terroristes criminels pour satisfaire ta haine anti France. Jamais la preuve ne sera faite que l’attentat est lié aux soi-disant commissions! Pourquoi rendre cet attentat monstrueux utile à la gauche male odorante de ses affaires de mafia marseillaise, et de souillures de moeurs dévoyés et honteusement salaces. Merci Tristane, continue dans ton combat, nous serons enfin lavé de la peste vérolée Stausskanienne!!!**************************************Réponse:Vous devez avoir des informations privilégiées, à la mode Hortefeux, pour pouvoir affirmer: « Jamais la preuve ne sera faite que l’attentat est lié aux soi-disant commissions! »jf.
I was so confused about what to buy, but this makes it understandable.
You can always tell an expert! Thanks for contributing.
Oh, and I have also since joked around with Jamie Bamber at a party and shaken hands and chatted briefly with both David Eick and Ron Moore.And I’ve had long conversations with Jane Espenson as I sat beside her on two separate occasions.It has nothing to do with Harry Potter, but it’s pretty cool.
Your website has to be the electronic Swiss army knife for this topic.
I searched a bunch of sites and this was the best.
Your post has lifted the level of debate
Joe: DMV = Department of Motor Vehicles, better known as the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. They operate free-standing offices in almost every county but Pasco. The only thing Mike Olson ever did was agree to share office space with the State for driver license exams.His employees work for the county, not the state.Try to keep up, Spanky.
We could’ve done with that insight early on.
If not for your writing this topic could be very convoluted and oblique.
In awe of that answer! Really cool!
I was drawn by the honesty of what you write
It’s always a relief when someone with obvious expertise answers. Thanks!
Whoever edits and publishes these articles really knows what they’re doing.
I believe this post was probably a powerful beginning to some possible series of articles about this subject. So numerous users pretend to know what they are preaching about when it comes to this area and usually, nearly no one actually get it. You appear to grasp it however, so I think you require to run with it. Thank you!
I’ll gear this review to 2 types of people: current Zune owners who are considering an upgrade, and people trying to decide between a Zune and an iPod. (There are other players worth considering out there, like the Sony Walkman X, but I hope this gives you enough info to make an informed decision of the Zune vs players other than the iPod line as well.)
At last some rationality in our little debate.
I appreciate you taking to time to contribute That’s very helpful.
Please keep throwing these posts up they help tons.
jean-marc, je te rassure… Y’a pas que sur le web que cela arrive (j’ai le même genre d’expérience concernant Diddl par exemple – on me demande pour importer ou ouvrir des boutiques), mais « pire » le dimanche matin, parfois j’ai des appels téléphonique pour connaître le magasin ed le plus proche ouvert (
Very good website you have here but I was wanting to know if you knew of any discussion boards that cover the same topics talked about in this article? I’d really like to be a part of online community where I can get comments from other experienced individuals that share the same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Many thanks!
We need more insights like this in this thread.
There is a critical shortage of informative articles like this.
Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The words in your article seem to be running off the screen in Internet explorer. I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with web browser compatibility but I thought I’d post to let you know. The design look great though! Hope you get the problem solved soon. Many thanks
Hello! I understand this is kind of off-topic however I neededto ask. Does running a well-established website such as yours require a lot of work?I am completely new to operating a blog but I do write in mydiary everyday. I’d like to start a blog so I can share my own experience and thoughts online. Please let me know if you have any suggestions or tips for new aspiring bloggers. Thankyou!
Ben continuez d’avoir honte et prenez un clochard sur vos genoux la prochaine fois que vous en croisez un si ça peut vous faire du bien. Mais ne pas vouloir supporter la puanteur d’autrui n’a rien de désobligeant. Ce qui est désobligeant par contre c’est qu’un individu méprise suffisamment les autres pour n’être pas gêné d’incommoder toutes les personnes qu’il croise. L’hygiène est une des règles de base de la vie en société, quel que soit votre degré de richesse.
Keep these articles coming as they’ve opened many new doors for me.
You’ve managed a first class post
Taking the overview, this post hits the spot
Hey hey hey, take a gander at what’ you’ve done
That’s way more clever than I was expecting. Thanks!
Whoever edits and publishes these articles really knows what they’re doing.
Alakazaam-information found, problem solved, thanks!
It was really nice to spend time with you at BlogHer ’12. I really enjoyed it was well. Thanks for discussing the upcoming Match.com and Stir events. I’ve shared this information with my readers (Suzyknew.com). I like the way their mixing up online dating with offline dating. I’ll have to see if I can catch one of their events!
Heck yeah bay-bee keep them coming!
Bruce, Herb Adams’ “Gray Ghost” was really a Tempest. It lives on as a vintage racer car. Clay, with any luck ,, see you and Stephen at Waterford later this month. Good tale. I’ve a little something equivalent I am engage in with an olde racer and his olde race car, but it really is trans-Atlantic and involves a overseas language!
I am totally wowed and prepared to take the next step now.
Ab fab my goodly man.
Greetings I am so thrilled I found your website, I really found you by mistake, while I was looking on Google for something else, Regardless I am here now and would just like to say thanks a lot for a remarkable post and a all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to browse it all at the minute but I have saved it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read a great deal more, Please do keep up the superb job.
None can doubt the veracity of this article.
That’s a cunning answer to a challenging question
You know, Bill makes a good suggestion.Let individual states simply opt out of the federal assistance provided by this reform. It takes no large feat of imagination to predict which ones would, if given the chance…Less money wasted on caring for all the filthy barefoot illegitimate children of white trash, and an end to the futility of providing health and dental care to inbred toothless rednecks.More modern medicine for the rest of us.