An old Inspiration

DON'T QUIT (Author Unknown)   When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest if you must, but don't you quit.   Life is queer with its twists and turns, As every one of us sometimes learns, And many a failure turns about, When he might have won if he'd stuck it out. Don't give up, though the pace seems slow - You may succeed with another blow.   Often the goal is nearer than It seems to a faint and faltering man; Often the struggler has given up When he might have captured the victor's cup, And he learned too late, when the night slipped down, How close he was to the golden crown.   Success is failure turned inside out - The silver tint of the clouds of doubt, And you never can tell how close you are - It may be near when it seems afar; So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit - It's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

Saite-Anne-de-Beaupre', Quebec

I ran across this poem on a plaque in one of the Shrine bookstores on our recent pilgrimage to Quebec with Fr. John and a bus load of fellow pilgrims. It reminded be of an incident when I was starting my tearoom business, Penelope's Teas & Gifts, back in 2001 in California. I was overwhelmed by it all and seriously wondered if I was being foolish and had gotten in over my head. While polishing a beautiful mahogany buffet we had recently purchased for the tearoom, I pulled out a drawer to clean behind it and found a bookmark with the above poem printed on it. I truly felt God was with me and I should keep on with the creation of what would become a place of comfort and grace to many visitors.