If

Posted on by Bulbul

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! 

by Rudyard Kipling

Very recently, while searching for this marvelous piece (I couldn’t stop myself from sharing it), I stumbled upon this exceptional Poetry Website. It is a huge repository of classic poems, and a dedicated platform for all the poets & poetry lovers. You can submit your new poems, discuss and rate existing work, listen to poems using voice pronunciation and even translate pieces to many common and not-so-common languages.

Their network welcomes poets from all over the world, where you can post your work online, and receive feedback and accolades from the growing community. So, all the poets & poetry lovers, go and check them out!

Photo by Lina Kivaka from Pexels

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© 2019-2020 Bulbul. All rights reserved.

Published by Bulbul

A young writer from India who has loved stories since she was able to understand one. Now, she tries weaving them herself.

19 thoughts on “If”

    1. I know right! This was my exact reaction after stumbling upon it, & I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t read it all this time.
      So great to hear from your roller-coaster, you sure have an amazing taste. Thank you for stopping by, I appreciate it.
      Cheers & Sunshine

      Like

    1. I know right! It is truly a legendary work; it has been 2 days since I stumbled upon it and I have been reading it multiple times a day.
      I just couldn’t stop myself from sharing it. Thank you for reading. 🙏💙🤗

      Liked by 3 people

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