He migrated into America from England at a very early age and started his career as a copy boy for the Detroit Free Press. When searching for small items to be used as fillers for the newspaper columns, he noticed that several of them were poems and he started writing his own poetry. He was 17 years old when his first poem was published. In his lifetime, he wrote 11,000 poems, syndicated in 300 newspapers and collected in books. He had a weekly radio show and hosted a TV series in 1951.
He was Edgar Albert Guest- the People's Poet as they use to call him. His poetry had made an imprint on my thoughts therefore... I wish to share his famous poetry MYSELF which is on self content and conveys a great message of being true to our own self.
Enjoy.......
MYSELF
I have to live with myself and so
I want to be fit for myself to know.
I want to be able as days go by,
always to look myself straight in the eye;
I don't want to stand with the setting sun
and hate myself for the things I have done .
I don't want to keep on a closet shelf
a lot of secrets about myself
and fool myself as I come and go
into thinking no one else will ever know
the kind of person I really am,
I don't want to dress up myself in sham.
I want to go out with my head erect
I want to deserve all men's respect;
but here in the struggle for fame and wealth
I want to be able to like myself.
I don't want to look at myself and know that
I am bluster and bluff and empty show .
I never can hide myself from me;
I see what others may never see;
I know what others may never know,
I never can fool myself and so,
whatever happens I want to be
self respecting and conscience free.
-Edgar Guest
Photo:- The above photograph depicts the handwriting of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi inscripted at Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmadabad with my younger daughter Pankhuri in the foreground.