When you get all you want and you struggle for self,
and the world makes you king for a day,
then go to the mirror and look at yourself
and see what that man has to say.
For it isn't your mother, your father or wife
whose judgment upon you must pass,
but the man, whose verdict counts most in your life
is the one staring back from the glass.
He's the fellow to please,
never mind all the rest.
For he's with you right to the end,
and you've passed your most difficult test
if the man in the glass is your friend.
You can fool the whole world,
down the highway of years,
and take pats on the back as you pass.
But your final reward will be heartache and tears
if you've cheated the man in the glass.
~Anonymous
12 comments:
Thank you so much for this poem The Man in the Mirror I will place it on my mirror for all my family to see. Im in a 12 step program and know these words are powerful. Once we take the focus off others and get the focus on improving no one but ourselves then and only then can we find Serenity. Just for today allow me to focus on improving only one thing me. My thoughts my word and my life. One day at a time
The poem was actually written by a man named Dale Wimbrow in 1934 and is entitled "The Man in the Glass"
I have information about the author of this poem
from this page---
http://www.theguyintheglass.com/
Our father, Peter "Dale" Wimbrow Sr. wrote the poem "The Guy in the Glass in 1934. It was published in the American magazine at that time and the copyright was assigned to our father. The poem has become also known, incorrectly, as "The Man in the Glass" or sometimes, "The Man in the Mirror", but the thought is the same, the message clear...'you can fool the whole world down the pathway of years, but you can't fool the guy staring back from the glass'
Since he wrote the poem in 1934 and it was published, it has taken on a life of its' own and is usually seen as anonymous. Sadly somepeople have even taken to putting their name on it as their own creation. It escapes us as to why someone would falsely take credit for a poem about being honest with your self. One fellow in Salt Lake City, Utah said he wrote it in 1946 and the list goes on. Others have badly misquoted the poem, substituting the word 'self' for 'pelf', 'man in the glass' for 'guy in the glass' and others have left out other parts. Each word was chosen by him carefully and has special meaning. We are immensely proud of his work and welcome any and all dialogue from interested parties. Our hope here is just to set the record straight and to provide the poem as it was actually written for any and all to use as our father's gift to the world. Our father was the most gifted and caring person we ever knew.... he would have wanted his work to be a gift and so do we. All we ask is that you properly credit him somewhere in your publication as the author
We have also presented other works by our father that we believe you might enjoy. His range was as broad as his sense of caring for mankind. His talents were many; songwriter, artist, writer, singer, painter but his biggest talent was truly loving everyone he ever knew. He left this earth way too early (January 1954 in his 58th year) and my sister and I have missed his counsel and wisdom every day since. It was the biggest honor of our life just to have known him. We have more of his writings and would be grateful and pleased to correspond with anyone who wants to learn more about this bear of a man and his works. Please enjoy our father's efforts!
Owesome poem...one that I try to live by everyday but society keeps clouding my mirror. I have once again placed it on my bathroom mirror to remind myself every morning that the person staring back is important and deserves respect and nobody is going to give it to me accept myself.
No, this poem was anymously engraved on a death row inmates wall, theguyintheglass.com webpage falsely claimed it much later, Dale Wimbrow did not write this.
this poem is like the best poem i have ever read but i am going to buy me, my cousin, my mom, my aunt, my g-ma, and my other cousin keithone because they hace been bragging about it and i was thinking to buy like all of us one ,cause we have been alive when michaeljackson was alive.
this poem is like the best poem i hve ever read but i am going to buy me, my cousin, my mom, my aunt, my g-ma, and my other cousin keith one because they have been bragging about it and i was thinking to buy all of us one , cause we have been alive when michaeljackson was alive.
Yes, this poem is one of the great ones. I feel if more people would be "true to self" and try to follow these words courageously, society would finally take a turn for the better. Certainly post a copy where you can see it every day, but I have gone one step further. I typed out a copy and printed it on good paper. I framed it with a nice wood frame (only about $3 at Wal-mart) and gave it to my 16 year-old son. What came with this gift was a heart-to-heart fatherly talk about the meaning of the poem and how I would like (expect?) him to apply it to his life now and always remember it for the future. This poem has had special meaning for me since the first day I read it many years ago. I only hope that other fathers care enough about their son's character and conduct to do the same thing I did. There is a book that states something like "All I needed to know about life I learned in the sandbox." This is mostly true, but character and conduct is something that has to be practiced and practiced so that you instinctively do the "RIGHT THING" on a consistent basis. To thine own self be true.
From: Tim in N.W. Georgia
After my dad died, I found this poem in his wallet. It had obviously been there for many years - all ragged and yellowed. My dad obviously believed in what he read. He was a great man and a great dad. I always try to remember him and ask myself what would my dad do during those times I feel especially challenged by people and events. When I look in the mirror and don't like what I see, I try to change and do better. If we can each keep working at it, that's a good thing.
I found this poem among my brothers belongs while we were cleaning out his apartment. Two days earlier he had died from alcoholism. This poem has been in my wallet ever since. I often pull it out and read it and wonder what he was thinking when he read it. I make sure to give a copy of it to friends that are going through hardtimes and need some help to find their own inner strength.
The Official Guy in the Glass Web Page
by Dale Wimbrow, 1895-1954
Our father, Peter "Dale" Wimbrow Sr. wrote the poem "The Guy in the Glass in 1934. It was published in the American magazine at that time and the copyright was assigned to our father. The poem has become also known, incorrectly, as "The Man in the Glass" or sometimes, "The Man in the Mirror", but the thought is the same, the message clear...'you can fool the whole world down the pathway of years, but you can't fool the guy staring back from the glass'
Since he wrote the poem in 1934 and it was published, it has taken on a life of its' own and is usually seen as anonymous. Sadly somepeople have even taken to putting their name on it as their own creation. It escapes us as to why someone would falsely take credit for a poem about being honest with your self. One fellow in Salt Lake City, Utah said he wrote it in 1946 and the list goes on. Others have badly misquoted the poem, substituting the word 'self' for 'pelf', 'man in the glass' for 'guy in the glass' and others have left out other parts. Each word was chosen by him carefully and has special meaning. We are immensely proud of his work and welcome any and all dialogue from interested parties. Our hope here is just to set the record straight and to provide the poem as it was actually written for any and all to use as our father's gift to the world. Our father was the most gifted and caring person we ever knew.... he would have wanted his work to be a gift and so do we. All we ask is that you properly credit him somewhere in your publication as the author
We have also presented other works
Source? Hmmm looks like the kids might have some humble pie https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_in_the_Mirror_(1936_film)
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