"Desiderata" by Max Ehrmann

When I was a little girl, my mom had a poster that she kept on the wall in our home.   I remember it being very long and very wordy, and because there were no unicorns on it (yes, I was that kind of girly girl), I never bothered to really look at it.
Just before Thanksgiving of my first year at university, my father had a very serious health scare... so scary that when I came home from school for the long-weekend, my parents called my siblings and me together for a family meeting to let us know the doctors were giving him 6 months.
I Thank God they were wrong about that, and I Thank God for modern medicine, because my father is still with us today - more than 20 years later.  ANYWAYS, it was during that trip home that I happened to notice my mom's poster, and actually read it for the first time.

Perhaps it was because I was distressing myself "with dark imaginings" and had many fears "born of fatigue and (the anticipated) loneliness" of losing my beloved father; AND perhaps it was because, at the tender age of 19, and living away from home for the first time, I was always comparing myself to others, and was overwhelmed by the misguided pressure to have to know right away what I was supposed to do with the rest of my life; BUT, whether it be the context of when I read it the first time, OR whether it be the inspiring message it carries - this piece has stayed with me over the years,

The poster was a poem called Desiderata - at the time it was credited to Anonymous, but I have since learned that it was actually written by a gentleman named Max Ehrmann.
Today, I have a plaque that bears the same words as that old poster did, hanging in my bedroom.  I don't pretend to read it everyday - BUT it does catch my eye from time to time, and whenever I'm feeling particularly stressed, or unsure about my future, I read it again to keep perspective on life.
SO, in honour of my younger self, who didn't trust enough that the path she was on would lead to a full and wonderful life and who constantly worried about the fact that she would choose the wrong fork in the road -  I share it with you today.

As always, Dayna



Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and 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 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 persons 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 fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is 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 imaginings.
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 whether 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 with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.