Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
But, he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn’t," but he would be one
Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it.
Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you’ll never do that;
At least no one has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle it in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "couldn’t be done," and you’ll do it.
Poem: Edgar A Guest
Photo by Alistair,
8 comments:
I LOVE this wee poem Al. Thank you for bringing it to my attention - a great way to start my Sunday! I'm now off to roll up my sleeves, put my favourite playlist on and tackle that funding application that everyone has told me not to bother filling in as I've 'nae chance' of being successful! Definitely going to 'buckle in' and give it my best shot!
Then I'm glad to have found this wee bit of inspiration for you this morning Jane.
Good luck with it!
Nice one.
I've never heard of him before, must do some more research.
Thanks Alistair, quite uplifting in a low-key way.
Your'e welcome sir! :-D
Beauty. I might give this poem to my daughter when she starts university in the fall.
It's a great message to be sure but I loved the rhythm of it too and its 'folksy' way of speaking.
Hey Alistair!
Damn, this was an uplifting tale; one for the nay-sayers to note.
"He started to sing as he tackled the thing / That couldn’t be done, and he did it."
Amen. Indigo
Nice to put a smile on a face or two with this one. I was looking back over some of the previous poems and thinking to myself that I'm a real maudlin kinda guy judging by what I've picked......
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