Well, son, I'll tell you: <br />Life for me ain't been no crystal stair. <br />It's had tacks in it, <br />And splinters, <br />And boards torn up, <br />And places with no carpet on the floor— <br />Bare. <br />But all the time <br />I'se been a-climbin' on, <br />And reachin' landin's, <br />And turnin' corners, <br />And sometimes goin' in the dark <br />Where there ain't been no light. <br />So, boy, don't you turn back. <br />Don't you set down on the steps. <br />'Cause you finds it's kinder hard. <br />Don't you fall now— <br />For I'se still goin', honey, <br />I'se still climbin', <br />And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.<br /><br />Langston Hughes<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/mother-to-son/
