Tuesday, August 23, 2011

If




Portrait of Natalia Pietrunkevic 1893

Nikolai Nikolaevich Ge














 



5 comments:

Clint said...

One of the greatest poems of all time. Perfect meter and rhyme. Perfect meaning. I wish I could live up to Mr Kipling's standards.

Shady Del Knight said...

I recognized myself here, Cindy, because my downfall has always been that I look too good and talk too wise! (LOL) Seriously, these are wonderful principles. I was taught that the great ones are people who make a fortune and then get a kick out of giving it all away and making a fortune again. If you "sort by others" you will constantly seek approval and validation from other people. If you "sort by self" you believe in your own worth. You know that you have all of the tools and resources that you need to succeed. It doesn't matter what anybody else thinks or says about you. Great post, my dear friend!

Crown of Beauty said...

This poem brought tears to my eyes, Cindy. Somewhere among my mementos from years past is a lovely card given by my dad for my 18th birthday, with this poem on it. Except that it was adapted toward the end, and instead of Man, it said, "Woman, my daughter." It is still appropriate.

My dad was a well read man, and Kipling was one of his favorites. He was also a man of good breeding.

This post really touched my heart.

Thanks for sharing.

Love
Lidj

Cindy Ellison said...

Shady, I have been feeling "paralyzed" and not even able to post on my comments here or even blog. Some of the things you wrote sure hit home, what you wrote about seeking approval and validation from other people. My Facebook quote is "To Thine Own Self Be True". It helps to remember this because when one is usually being true to themselves, I want to believe they are doing the right thing. Thank you for the great thoughts, Shady!

Lidj, you always leave such special comments and this was another great one! What a wonderful and thoughtful father you had to give you the poem, "If", on a card for your 18th birthday. I like it that it was worded for a woman. I thought of that when I posted it the other day, that it applied to both genders. Hope things are going well with you, Lidj, thank you so much for your visit and remembrance of that old poem.

Shady Del Knight said...

I just checked back to this post. :( You have a knack for feeling my pain and I yours, dear friend. Whatever was causing it I hope that you are unblocked and that the river is flowing once again.