Kareen Joy P.

Belicario Response Essay LIT 11 10:30-12:00 TTH

“Desiderata”

Max Ehrmann

"Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself." When I was young, I thought
that when I reached the age of 23, I would have my own house and be living a good life. But life
doesn’t go as smoothly as I thought it would. Now, I felt like I was running out of time, so I tend
to do things as quickly as possible. Juggling work and school and constantly reminding myself to
be tough and endure it all because I believe that soon it will pay off. When it comes to attaining
my goals, I have a tendency to be so demanding of myself that I end up wearing myself out or
wondering if I'm doing the right thing. When I read the poem Desiderata, I was immediately
reminded to be gentle with myself, because the poem narrates how to live an authentic lifestyle
that emphasizes loving oneself and being dignified without disrespecting others.

This poem made me realize 10 things I must remind myself of. First, I need to listen to
my own thoughts and feelings before making any decision. For me, decision-making is really
tough because I have always been clouded by my doubts. Second step is to believe in oneself.
Because I am a very complicated person, I have always wanted the best for myself, and one
misstep can keep me from taking advantage of opportunities, so this time I want to explore my
weaknesses by being confident. Third, I want to do things that I really want to do. I realize that
doing the things I like would make my work less difficult because of the happiness it brings me
in the process. Fourth, I need to be polite and fair to others. You should treat others as you would
like to be treated. I believe that everyone is walking their own path with their own struggles.
Fifth, I needed to remind myself to enjoy the process so that I would not feel exhausted when
doing a certain task, and sixth, I want to take my time. Life is not a competition, so this time I
want to do things slowly and smoothly so that I will feel rewarded when my success comes.
Seventh, I needed to work in peace and let the success speak for me. Eighth, I needed to be
optimistic so that I could manifest good things in life. Ninth, strive to be happy, and lastly, I need
to continue growing.

These are the things I want to practice in order to live an authentic lifestyle, similar to
that of a poem, because being young in this society is a huge challenge in and of itself. We live
in a world where we have so many responsibilities and high expectations of ourselves and others
as well. The poem "Desiderata" once again reminded me that there is more to life than meets the
eye.