Friday, November 13, 2009

Revisiting my all-time favourite poem


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!

Friday, January 02, 2009

Lyrics from Rocky Balboa (2006) - "It ain't over 'til it's over."


Rocky (1-5) had always been a treat to watch. Recently, I saw Rocky Balboa, the last part of this series and a dialogue from Rocky to his son from a particular scene truly inspired me. I quote that here:

"You let people stick a finger on your face and tell you you are no good, and when things get out of hand, you started looking for sth to blame. Like a big shadow. Let me tell you something you already know. The world aint all sunshine and rainbows. Its a very mean and nasty place. It wont care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep it permanently if you let it. It aint about hard you hit, its about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. Thats how its done. Now if you know what's your worth, then go out and get what you are worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits and not pointing fingers saying you werent what you want to be because of him, her or anybody. Cowards do that and that aint you. You better than that."

Well, wish you a very happy 2009!