Impossibilities of Being

Congratulations!

Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

You’ll look up and down streets. Look ‘em over with care. About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”

And you may not find any you’ll want to go down.
In that case, of course,
you’ll head straight out of town.

It’s opener there
in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.

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

OH!
THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!

You’ll be on your way up! You’ll be seeing great sights! You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.

You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.

You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead. Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t. Because, sometimes, you won’t.

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

You can get all hung up in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch.

You can get so confused

that you’ll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace and grind on for miles across  weirdish wild space, headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.

The Waiting Place…

…for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or No
or waiting for their hair to grow. 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 the 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.

Except when they don’t. Because, sometimes, they won’t.

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

‘cause you’ll play against you.

All Alone!

Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you’ll be quite a lot.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul.
On you will go
though your enemies  prowl. On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl. Onward up many
a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.

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

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 3⁄4 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!)

CONCEPT

This series is inspired by the poem “Oh the Places You’ll Go” by Dr. Seuss. The accompanying poem takes on the warm and wise tone likened to the advice given by a parent to their child. This work aims to illustrate such a narrative of people going through the journey of life and the cycle of ups and downs that come with each new day.

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