This book has got several of Kipling?s poems that he wrote during his lifetime. But there is one masterpiece which hasn?t lost its grandeur till today.
It is ’If’ by Rudyard Kipling. Rudyard Kipling’s (1865-1936) inspirational poem ’If’ first appeared in his collection ’Rewards and Fairies’ in 1909. The poem ’If’ is inspirational, motivational, and a set of rules for ’grown-up’ living. Kipling’s ’If’ contains mottos and maxims for life, and the poem is also a blueprint for personal integrity, behavior and self-development. ’If’ is perhaps even more relevant today than when Kipling wrote it, as an ethos and a personal philosophy. Lines from Kipling’s ’If’ appear over the player’s entrance to Wimbledon’s Centre Court - a poignant reflection of the poem’s timeless and inspiring quality.
Well I like the poem so much that I have memorized it. I use it in my everyday life. I would like to share some of my moments summed up in a day & how Kipling’s ’If’ really inspired me. The verses are quoted in bold.
I woke up(rather woken up by my little irritating niece who had lost her toy) one hot summer morning. She blamed me for the deed and I said ’’Are you crazy?’’. But it was no use my sister & my mom scolded me for losing her so ’precious’ toy. I suddenly remembered Kipling’s words & kept cool.
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;
I left the house as I was getting late & went to the bus-stop.I was waiting for my friend Manoj. He didn’t turn up. He had promised me he would pick me up on his bike on his way to college. But suddenly I got a call from him that as he gave his girlfriend a lift to college he couldn?t pick me up. I was perspiring like anything on that summer morning & there he was enjoying. I hated him for his lies & then Kipling’s words cooled me down
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;
I finally reached college late due to which I got a trashing from my Electronics teacher. I had written a technical paper for the inter-college competition. I had always dreamed about winning a prize in that competition. But my Electronics teacher thought it to be all ’crap’ and said she couldn’t forward it to the inter-college committee. My heart ached when I saw my dream getting tore in front of the entire class. She humiliated me in front of my fellow students. I wanted to pick up the duster on the table & smack it on her head. But then once again Mr. Kipling stopped me.
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 imposters 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;
I, as well as entire college knew that I was the best basketball player in college until Rahul came in. I knew I couldn?t tolerate his growing popularity in college (especially among girls) so I challenged him to a match. I don?t know why I did it maybe to satisfy my ego that I am the best. I put my feet where my mouth was. And I lost. I didn?t have to tell anyone, my friends did it for me. I lay low with that defeat. I had lost my dignity. I knew my popularity would decline, I was depressed. But then Mr. Kipling?s words came to my rescue and made me ’hold on’. I decided next time no way I was going to spare that dolt Rahul.
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 breath 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’’;
I returned home tired and exhausted and got a call from my girlfriend. It was her birthday and I hadn’t called her. She yelled at me like a barking dog. I wasn’t bothered and I tuned her out. Then my little niece came into my room with a sheepish smile. She said she had found her toy in the lawn where she herself had put it. I wanted to bang her head into the wall instead I took her in my arms & kissed her soft pink cheeks as I remembered what Mr. Kipling had said
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!
I went to sleep peacefully forgetting everything except the poem knowing that there was yet another day tomorrow which I had to leave & utilize those 24 golden hours that were gifted to me.
Hope you liked the review and the message that this timeless classic poem carries