Unsubdued
S.E. Kiser
I have hoped, I have planned, I have striven,
To the will I have added the deed;
The best that was in me I've given,
I have prayed, but the gods would not heed.
To the will I have added the deed;
The best that was in me I've given,
I have prayed, but the gods would not heed.
I have dared and reached only disaster,
I have battled and broken my lance;
I am bruised by a pitiless master
That the weak and the timid call Chance.
I have battled and broken my lance;
I am bruised by a pitiless master
That the weak and the timid call Chance.
I am old, I am bent, I am cheated
Of all that Youth urged me to win;
But name me not with the defeated,
Tomorrow again, I begin.
Of all that Youth urged me to win;
But name me not with the defeated,
Tomorrow again, I begin.
**********
Next Wednesday, my son graduates from high school. For some, graduation is a time of banquets and award ceremonies, honors and accolades. For others, it's simply a time for, "Phew! We made it!"
At our house?
Perhaps you can guess.
Recently, I have been thinking a lot about my son's journey.
He has not loved high school (or elementary or middle school for that matter).
He does not like sitting still.
He does not like listening to other people talk.
He does not like talking himself.
His is a world of doing, not words.
He went to school mostly because you have to go to school to play football.
And that boy loves, loves, loves his football.
And now he is finishing.
It has not always been pretty.
But he is finishing.
And I am proud of him
for persevering.
For getting up every morning
(ok, well mostly every morning)
and squaring his shoulders
and doing what he had to do.
again
and again
and again.
Congratulations buddy.
I am proud of you.
At our house?
Perhaps you can guess.
Recently, I have been thinking a lot about my son's journey.
He has not loved high school (or elementary or middle school for that matter).
He does not like sitting still.
He does not like listening to other people talk.
He does not like talking himself.
His is a world of doing, not words.
He went to school mostly because you have to go to school to play football.
And that boy loves, loves, loves his football.
And now he is finishing.
It has not always been pretty.
But he is finishing.
And I am proud of him
for persevering.
For getting up every morning
(ok, well mostly every morning)
and squaring his shoulders
and doing what he had to do.
again
and again
and again.
Congratulations buddy.
I am proud of you.
Irene Latham is hosting Poetry Friday.
13 comments:
Congratulations to your son! And now, a new phase of his life will commence :). Good luck to him!
Congrats to your son, Carol, and to you, for reaching this milestone! Wishing him a life of opportunity and blessings beyond the school doors, where he'll make his own way.
Carol, what a great choice for your boy. I don't even know him, and I'm bursting with pride!
Congratulations to you both!
This is a world that needs people who DO, and I'm sure he will find his next steps . . .
Jet
I love this, Carol, & congratulations to your son, & you, too, for all the angst of these years & for taking on the challenges & succeeding too. I'm happy for you!
Congratulations to you and your son, Carol! What a wonderful accomplishment and it affirms your nights of hard work, diligence, heartaches/headaches - in the struggle to complete most everything. :) Thank you for sharing your journey with us.
HUZZAH! He made it to the finish line! (And you did, too!)
Both poems are fabulous tributes to the effort, persistence, resilience, sweat, blood, and tears that it took to get there.
You are amazing. I hope he realizes how lucky he is to have you as his champion...
What a wonderful mother you are! I love when I see people loving the children they have, just the way they are. Congratulations to your son! It sounds to me like he is going to be a huge success, probably more so than many of the more academic kids.
Congratulations to you and your son! I am touched by your post because I have a son very much like the one describe here. Ours will definitely be a "whew" experience. If we can only get there..... enjoy this moment! Thanks for sharing.
Congratulations to you both! I, too, had one of those children. It's a day of rejoicing at such a milestone. Enjoy.
"Tomorrow again, I begin." -- that's a good motto for all of us.
Congratulations to you and your son! It's a wonderful accomplishment. All the best to him as he finds his way!
I really like the poem, but the story about your son moved me. Good for him, and for you.
Yeah for your buddy. I'm so glad he passed that test...phew, but we all knew he would. I can't wait to hear more about from you about the rest of his beautiful, young life. xo nanc
Congratulations, Carol. I am with you. For our older daughter, it was definitely Whew. And our younger has always been a good student until this, her junior year. I suspect a year from now, it will be Whew again. But maybe that is all the *more* reason to be proud and celebrate. I love the determined tone of this. I am hearing To Dream the Impossible Dream in my head now:>) Congrats again to you and your son!
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