{"id":5286,"date":"2011-04-30T17:29:54","date_gmt":"2011-04-30T22:29:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/?p=5286"},"modified":"2011-04-30T18:03:57","modified_gmt":"2011-04-30T23:03:57","slug":"my-messag-to-the-graduates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/my-messag-to-the-graduates\/","title":{"rendered":"My message to the graduates"},"content":{"rendered":"

27 years ago, my middle school teacher, Mrs. Herbster, had us memorize the poem “If\u2013” by Rudyard Kipling. Kipling might be best known as the author of The Jungle Book<\/em>, which Disney made into movie that included a brown boy in a loin cloth, a snake with twirling, zombie eyes, and a blue talking and singing bear.<\/p>\n

I thought I would really impress my former teacher all these years later by reciting it, as part of my speech to the graduates, during their celebratory luncheon at Christian Fellowship Academy<\/a> this Monday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

See, I have this great memory. I just have to read things a few times\u2013and boom\u2013they’re in my hard drive. No. This used to be true<\/strong>, but I haven’t upgraded my memory, and my hard drive has loads of non sense on it. I tried it, but could only remember the first four lines. SIGH…. hmmp.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rudyard Kipling<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I still want to read it to them, on Monday, though. It’s GREAT advice. Maybe you’ll get something out of it too.<\/p>\n

Tell me what you<\/span> think about it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

IF\u2013<\/span>
\n-Rudyard Kipling<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

IF you can keep your head when all about you <\/span>
\nAre losing theirs and blaming it on you,<\/span>
\nIf you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,<\/span>
\nBut make allowance for their doubting too;<\/span>
\nIf you can wait and not be tired by waiting,<\/span>
\nOr being lied about, don’t deal in lies,<\/span>
\nOr being hated, don’t give way to hating,<\/span>
\nAnd yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:<\/span><\/p>\n

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;<\/span>
\nIf you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;<\/span>
\nIf you can meet with Triumph and Disaster<\/span>
\nAnd treat those two impostors just the same;<\/span>
\nIf you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken<\/span>
\nTwisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,<\/span>
\nOr watch the things you gave your life to, broken,<\/span>
\nAnd stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:<\/span><\/p>\n

If you can make one heap of all your winnings <\/span>
\nAnd risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,<\/span>
\nAnd lose, and start again at your beginnings<\/span>
\nAnd never breathe a word about your loss;<\/span>
\nIf you can force your heart and nerve and sinew<\/span>
\nTo serve your turn long after they are gone,<\/span>
\nAnd so hold on when there is nothing in you<\/span>
\nExcept the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’<\/span><\/p>\n

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,<\/span>
\n‘ Or walk with Kings – nor lose the common touch,<\/span>
\nif neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,<\/span>
\nIf all men count with you, but none too much;<\/span>
\nIf you can fill the unforgiving minute<\/span>
\nWith sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,<\/span>
\nYours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,<\/span>
\nAnd – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

27 years ago, my middle school teacher, Mrs. Herbster, had us memorize the poem “If\u2013” by Rudyard Kipling. Kipling might be best known as the author of The Jungle Book, which Disney made into movie that included a brown boy in a loin cloth, a snake with twirling, zombie eyes, and a blue talking and … Continue reading My message to the graduates<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,9],"tags":[4233,4720,4717,4716,4721,4719,2592,4714,2979,4722,3164,4723,4718,4715],"class_list":["post-5286","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-authors","category-books","tag-advice","tag-christian-fellowship-academy","tag-graduation","tag-if","tag-memories","tag-mrs-herbster","tag-poem","tag-rudyard-kipling","tag-school","tag-speaker","tag-speaking","tag-speaking-engagement","tag-speech","tag-the-jungle-book"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5286","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5286"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5292,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5286\/revisions\/5292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5286"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}