(Author unknown. Some verses attributed to W.J.A. Rowe)
When things go wrong,
as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging
seems all uphill,
When funds are low and
the debts are high,
And you want to smile but
you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.
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
if he’d stuck it out.
Don’t give up, though
the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering heart;
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured
the victor’s cup.
And he learned too late,
as the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
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;
So stick to the fight when
you’re hardest hit -
It’s when things seem worst
that you mustn’t quit.
