“If” Part 4

by Andersen Hoo

If you can tolerate pain in silence,
when around you people cry out,
and help others in less pain than you are;

If you can put aside your pride,
suppress your indignance,
and work wholeheartedly in matters non-beneficial;

If you can take on the workload and burdens of others solely for them,
and give joy at the cost of your own;

If you can outlive your demons instead of outrun them;

If you can accept things as they are,
stay rooted to help others,
and use knowledge obtained through experience to speak to them;

Then you will be a man, my son.

by Owen Ngeow

If you’ve grown a pair of wings to fly with,

And can use them to evade humans who scream and crush you;

If you love touching the ceiling and hate open spaces,

But are hardy and brave enough to go out when you have to;

If you enjoy scaring people and carrying diseases,

Living in sewers and other unhygienic places;

Socializing with ants, lice, fleas, rats, mice,

And horrifyingly appearing under someone’s four of aces;

Then you are a Cockroach!

And no longer a Nymph

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Our journeys captured.