Disiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortune of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery.
But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life if full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imagining.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whatever or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
2007-03-05 08:35:06
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answer #1
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answered by Lorrie C 2
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Afternoon on a Hill by Edna St. Vincent Millay.
I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one.
I will look at cliffs and clouds
With quiet eyes,
Watch the wind blow down the grass,
And the grass rise.
And when lights begin to show
Up from the town,
I will mark which must be mine,
And then start down.
2007-03-05 15:04:54
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answer #2
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answered by concernedjean 5
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This is not long (it's part of a longer poem), and it is religious:
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.
~ Reinhold Niebuhr
2007-03-05 08:30:30
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answer #3
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answered by Nicnac 4
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A copy of the Desiderata by Max Erhmann.
2007-03-05 08:28:09
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answer #4
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answered by Sophist 7
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this is kinda short:
Pessimism leads to weakness;
Optimism to Power.
- william James
2007-03-05 09:04:43
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answer #5
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answered by Wild Honey 4
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"Nothing ever comes to one, that is worth having, except as a result of hard work."
Booker T. Washington
2007-03-05 08:47:48
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answer #6
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answered by Shadow Lark 5
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Hope?
Nope.
2007-03-05 08:32:58
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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i like this site
http://www.somethingtoshare.com/Poems/Main_Inspirational_Poems.shtm#
2007-03-05 10:14:42
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answer #8
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answered by pearly_cherry 4
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