George Washington Carver

This is a great poem by Edgar Guest.  If you’ve ever felt that you didn’t have what it takes to succeed, or felt like someone else could do it but you couldn’t then you can find some inspiration here.

The poem was a favorite of George Washington Carver whose picture is on the right.

I once saw a re-write of the poem that said, “Dream great dreams and say, ‘God Can.’”  This really is the spirit of the poem.

Equipment

Figure it out for yourself, my lad,
You’ve all that the greatest of men have had,
Two arms, two hands, two legs, two eyes,
And a brain to use if you would be wise.
With this equipment they all began,
So start for the top and say “I can.”

Look them over, the wise and great,
They take their food from a common plate
And similar knives and forks they use,
With similar laces they tie their shoes,
The world considers them brave and smart.
But you’ve all they had when they made their start.

You can triumph and come to skill,
You can be great if only you will,
You’re well equipped for what fight you choose,
You have legs and arms and a brain to use,
And the man who has risen, great deeds to do
Began his life with no more than you.

You are the handicap you must face,
You are the one who must choose your place,
You must say where you want to go.
How much you will study the truth to know,
God has equipped you for life, But He
Lets you decide what you want to be.

Courage must come from the soul within,
The man must furnish the will to win,
So figure it out for yourself, my lad,
You were born with all that the great have had,
With your equipment they all began.
Get hold of yourself, and say: “I can.”

In The George Washington Carver Page at: http://www.tuskegee.edu is this statement regarding the poem:

“EQUIPMENT” by Edgar A. Guest was Dr. Carver’s favorite poem; he can be heard reciting it at an audio station at the George Washington Carver Museum . An inspiring video of his life can also be viewed along with a superb collection of artifacts demonstrating his achievements. The Carver Museum and TheOaks, home of Booker T. Washington, comprise a National Historic District, on the Tuskegee University campus

This poem has long been a favorite of mine and I feel honored to join Dr. Carver in appreciation of it.

I intend to add a page devoted to Dr. Carver.  His story is one of the most amazing and inspirational stories in American history.  In the meantime there is a great article about him at Guideposts Magazine.  The article ends with a quote from Dr. Carver concerning where he got his ideas and why he didn’t patent most of them: “God speaks to all of us every hour, if we will only listen.”