Recent Posts
Inspiration June 23, 2020
We've all had those days - but how do we get out of them?
Image via Unsplash/@avasol“There’ll be days like this, my mama said.”
The Shirelle’s phrased it best in their 1960 hit, “Mama Said.” We all have days where we’re feeling down, and we don’t want to get out of bed. We wish there was something that would encourage us to be positive and face the day ahead.
Luckily, there is – reading motivational poems.
Poetry has been known to motivate both the young and old alike. From the traditional poets of the seventeenth century to the spoken word queens of the current era, people have long used their words to inspire others. No matter the reason you’re having a rough day, there’s a poem out there that you need to hear.
Success
William Arthur Ward
Happiness comes not from having much to live on
but having much to live for.
Success never resides in the world of weak wishes,
but in the palace of purposeful plans and prayerful persistence.
Pessimism achieves no success over persistence.
Temporary defeat never spells total failure;
one victory never assures permanent success.
A real success is one who makes
his mark in life without smearing others.
Excellence without effort is as futile as progress without preparation
Work can be our friend or foe, or joy or our woe.
Success, like happiness, is more than a destination –
it is a venture; more than an achievement – it is an attitude.
The greatest failure is the failure to try.
Alter your attitude and you will change your life.
Who seeks success, let him prepare.
Improvement is the son of discontent;
success is the offspring of preparation.
To emphasize the positive – the affirmative –
is to travel the high road of joy.
William Arthur Ward was known as an inspirational guru in the 1900s. A man of strong faith, he wrote hundreds of motivational poems and articles throughout his lifetime.
Indeed, his words here ring true. We all know that success doesn’t come without hard work. But the reverse is true as well – if you work hard enough, success will come! The fact that it hasn’t come yet just means it’s still waiting on the horizon.
Our favorite line: “Excellence without effort is as futile as progress without preparation.”
Still I Rise
Maya Angelou
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise.
Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
’Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.
Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I’ll rise.
Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries?
Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don’t you take it awful hard
’Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines
Diggin’ in my own backyard.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.
Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I’ve got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs?
Out of the huts of history’s shame
I rise
Up from a past that’s rooted in pain
I rise
I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
Maya Angelou was a legend of self-confidence. Her motivational poems embody what it means to be proud – proud of your history, proud of your accomplishments, and proud of the ways in which you’ve overcome the struggles life throws your way.
If you’re dealing with the pain of a heartbreak, absorb every last bit of Angelou’s words. You are strong. You are powerful. Show the world that you mean business. And don’t let anyone take your light away.
Our favorite lines: “Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
’Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.”
I Will Not Die an Unlived Life
Dawna Markova
I will not die an unlived life.
I will not live in fear
of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid,
more accessible,
to loosen my heart
until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance;
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.
Dr. Dawna Markova has written many books on topics such as collaboration and reconciliation, with the effort of helping people live a more meaningful life. Among all the motivational poems out there, hers stands out as incredibly insightful and real. Markova doesn’t deny that taking risks is scary or try to pretend that everything will always be OK. What she does, however, is assure her audience that the risks are worth it. Not only that, but they will perhaps inspire others in the future to take risks as well.
Our favorite lines: “I choose to risk my significance;
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.”
Sarah Kay’s voice is like music to the ears. Equally captivating are her words, which remind us that every little step in our lives should be celebrated. If you’re needing an extra push to go chase your dreams, Kay’s inspirational poems will give you the encouragement you need.
No matter what you’re struggling with, here’s to motivational poems that’ll help you dream big and face your day with a smile!
Our favorite lines: “In the original story God told Sarah she could do something impossible and she laughed, because the first Sarah, she didn’t know what to do with impossible. And me? Well, neither do I, but I see the impossible every day.”
