Friends, the year was 2007 when I was living in the UK; I had the privilege of studying NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) – the effect of language on our mind and how we think.
I was introduced to the fascinating world of storytelling, metaphors, voice modulation, etc. What I still remember from this training that I took 13 years ago is this: Words, poetry, music, drama can significantly alter a person’s state of mind.

And this poem, that I’m about to share with you, attributed to Edgar Albert Guest & John Greenleaf Whittier; has always given me the strength to persevere for my long-term goals; has always lifted my emotions up; and in the middle of some of the very uncertain and chaotic times of my life, it’s given me this very simple message: Rest, if you have to, but don’t you quit.  

"When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit."

There is a lot of controversy around who the original author is. Some sources on the internet say it was Edgar A. Guest (1881-1959) and yet there are some citations that attribute the poem to John Greenleaf Whittier.

Watch this video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/M1I0uXplZpM

#SimerjeetSinghPoems #PoetryThatInspires #DontQuit #Nevergiveup #EnglishPoems

For more information about Simerjeet's work as a motivational speaker, please visit his website: http://www.simerjeetsingh.com

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