Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
by the incomparable Dr. Seuss
Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
You’ll
look up and down streets. Look’em over with care. About some you will
say, “I don’t choose to go there.” With your head full of brains and
your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down a not-so-good
street.
And you may not find any you’ll want to go down. In that
case, of course, you’ll head straight out of town. It’s opener there in
the wide open air.
Out there things can happen and frequently do to people as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along. You’ll start happening too.
Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
You
won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed. You’ll pass the whole
gang and you’ll soon take the lead. Wherever you fly, you’ll be best
of the best. Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don’t.
Because, sometimes, you won’t.
I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true that Bang-ups and Hang-ups can happen to you.
You can get all hung up in a prickle-ly perch. And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch.
You’ll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump. And the chances are, then, that you’ll be in a Slump.
And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun. Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.
You
will come to a place where the streets are not marked. Some windows
are lighted. But mostly they’re darked. A place you could sprain both
your elbow and chin! Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in? How
much can you lose? How much can you win?
And if you go in,
should you turn left or right…or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe,
not quite? Or go around back and sneak in from behind? Simple it’s not,
I’m afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.
You
can get so confused that you’ll start in to race down long wiggled
roads at a break-necking pace and grind on for miles across weirdish
wild space, headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place…for people just waiting.
Waiting
for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to
come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or
waiting around for a Yes or No or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.
Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting
for wind to fly a kite or waiting around for Friday night or waiting,
perhaps, for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil, or a Better Break or a
string of pearls, or a pair of pants or a wig with curls, or Another
Chance. Everyone is just waiting.
No! That’s not for you!
Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting and staying. You’ll find the
bright places where Boom Bands are playing. With banner flip-flapping,
once more you’ll ride high! Ready for anything under the sky. Ready
because you’re that kind of a guy!
Oh, the places you’ll go!
There is fun to be done! There are points to be scored. There are games
to be won. And the magical things you can do with that ball will make
you the winning-est winner of all. Fame! You’ll be famous as famous can
be, with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.
Except when they don’t. Because, sometimes, they won’t.
I’m afraid that some times you’ll play lonely games too. Games you can’t win ‘cause you’ll play against you.
All Alone!
Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you’ll be quite a lot.
And
when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet things that
scare you right out of your pants. There are some, down the road
between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won’t want to go
on.
But on you will go though the weather be foul. On you will
go though your enemies prowl. On you will go though the Hakken-Kraks
howl. Onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak. On and on you will hike. And I know you’ll
hike far and face up to your problems whatever they are.
You’ll
get mixed up, of course, as you already know. You’ll get mixed up with
many strange birds as you go. So be sure when you step. Step with care
and great tact and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act. Just
never forget to be dexterous and deft. And never mix up your right foot
with your left.
And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)
Kid, you’ll move mountains!
So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray or Mordecai Ale Van Allen O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!
