When Things Go Wrong

"When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

And the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing down a bit,

Rest, if you must—but don’t you quit.

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."

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.

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 afar;

Stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit—

It’s when things seem worse that you mustn’t quit."

-- Edgar A. Guest