Oh the places I'll go!

So... the book "Oh! the places you'll go" by Dr. Seuss is one of my favorite books, I live life by it. Or I at least try to. It was given to me on my 21st birthday from my friend Candie. It was right around the time when I was still fresh out of the closet and high on life and my whole outlook on life was changing. This book helped me form the person I am today. I read it every now and then and I say "oh yeah, forgot about that". If ever you need a self-help book, this is the best one.

Below are a few excerpts from the book... I hope I'm not going against any copyright laws here. Consider it the abridged version.

"You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

And when things start to happen,
don’t worry. Don’t stew.
Just go right along.
You’ll start happening too.

I’m sorry to say so
but, sadly, it’s true
that Bang-ups
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

And when you’re in a Slump,
you’re not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself
is not easily done.

You can get so confused
that you’ll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-neck pace
and grind on for miles across wierdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...

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.

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.

I’m afraid that some times
you’ll play lonely games too.
Games you can’t win
‘cause you’ll play against you.

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.

On and on you will hike.
And you know you’ll hike far
and face up to your problems
whatever they are.

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 Ali Van Allen O’Shea,
you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way! "

- Dr. Seuss



Hope that inspires all of you to do what YOU want to do! If you've never read the book, buy it and read it. If you've read it before, read it again!

Thanks to Joy from my work, I've got an "Oh! the places you'll go" journal to take with me. I'm going to write the whole story on it for my first entry, keep me motivated.