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Monday 9 March 2015

Introduction of "I "

If...

Rudyard Kipling (1865 - 1936).

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 wornout 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!


With thanks to Denise Nesbitt, who created ABC.Don't forget to mention Mrs. Nesbitt IF you want to join us with another I-word.

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18 comments:

  1. I love that poem. I love Rudyard Kipling's stories too - we've done some in our book club and the kids enjoyed them as much as I did.

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  2. IF it weren't for you and some other stalwarts, we couldn't do this thing we do!

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  3. IF it weren't for you and some other stalwarts, we couldn't do this thing we do!

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  4. One of my favorite poems!

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  5. One of my favorite poems!

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  6. Great poem! Thanks for sharing it...

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  7. Thank you Roger! I like this meme, because I learn a lot from bloggers, who deal with various subjects like history, geography, literature, English and other languages etc.

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  8. Hello.
    It`s a very good choice for "I". Great poem. It was interesting to read.

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  9. Oh Wil... I am so sorry, I chose the exact same poem as you and now I have posted it. I guess great minds think alike !! Can't change it now. I have appointments coming up. Never mind it's worth reading twice!

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  10. Hi! Nice poem. Thanks for sharing.

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  11. I love Rudyard Kipling, and this is definitely one of my favorites poems. My late father used to read it to me in Spanish when I was a young. Thank you for the fond memories.

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  12. I love this inspirational poem.
    If only we all could follow it word by word :)

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  13. Classic poem! Thanks for hosting.
    My "I" stands for ITALY

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  14. "I" is for "IRIS"
    Thanks for hosting.

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  15. Reader Wil, fabulous poem to introduce 'I' for this week. It seems to me one could put 'woman' in the place of 'man' or 'human' because it's fitting for all of us.

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  16. A good poem to remind us to be humble. :-)

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  17. What a great Intro...If this abc meme continues into perpetuity it should be used over and over♪ http://lauriekazmierczak.com/incline/

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