First Poem of the Year

It Couldn't be Done
By Edgar Guest

Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But, he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't" but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.

So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, as he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one we know has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle right in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That cannot be done, and you'll do it

A nice poem, a better thought and great advice. Do not let others define what can be done. My number one reason for showing you this poem if for the obvious baseball reasons. But don't stop there. Who is telling you what kind of student you are, what kind of classes you should take or avoid taking. What colleges you should set your sites on and other limits in your life.

Two real world examples:

I played ball with a guy who did not figure out what he wanted to be until he was 23 years old. And then he decided that he wanted to be a pilot of all things. EVERYONE told him NO WAY. He was 23, had no military flying experience HAD NOT EVEN HAD ONE FLYING LESSON. Age 23. His competition joined the air force out of high school and had been flying since they were 18. Today he is a pilot with Alaska Airlines (I always look into the cockpit when I enter a plane because I sure as hell do not want to fly on his plane!)

My wife's brother got the notion that he wanted to go to Harvard when he was in high school. Everyone said WHO ARE YOU KIDDING, no one from Evergreen High School in White Center is ever going to get into Harvard. Yet he got in and graduated with honors.

Do not listen to others when setting your goals. Sometimes nice advice is to spare you from the limitations that others have put on themselves. While I agree that you can't have everything, I do believe that you can have anything. It is all a matter of application, dedication and inspiration.