‘Perseverance’ often better than ‘I can’t’

As an opposite of Perseverance, Edgar Guest offered this verse of his poem "Can’t":

Can’t is the father of feeble endeavor,

The parent of terror and halfhearted work.

It weakens the efforts of artisans clever.

And makes of the toiler an indolent shirk.

It poisons the soul of the man with a vision,

It stifles in infancy many a plan;

If greets honest toiling with open derision

And mocks at the hopes and the dreams of a man

While I was a prison warden, I had a general dislike for the word "can’t." I don’t remember hearing that word often during my upbringing in Dargan either.

It was a word too easily spoken, and too quickly accepted as a "feeble endeavor."  It also has a tendency to represent a position not conducive to a good effort.

I once was assigned a major project and had convened a meeting to discuss its implementation at our prison. Several senior members of my team were gathered to discuss a plan.

One such member in his opening comments, stated emphatically "I can’t do this;" not only once or twice, but three times at the onset of the meeting. I politely asked him to excuse himself, and I would review the matter with him later.

Red-faced, he left the room, as I thought of Edgar Guest’s poem.

As I was reading William Bennett’s chapter on Perseverance in his Book of Virtues, he had shared some introductory remarks on Harry S. Truman, and his traits on performing his presidential duties.

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"Drawing on an ancient Chinese proverb, Harry Truman recounted in his ‘Memoirs’ that being president is like riding a tiger. A man has to keep on riding or be swallowed. He went on to explain that a president either is constantly on top of events or, if he hesitates, events will soon be on top of him. I never felt like I could let up for a single moment, said Truman.

Bennett concluded that "perseverance" is an essential quality of character in high-level leadership; much good is lost through hesitation, faltering, wavering, vacillating or just not sticking with it.

As I survey the lay of the land these days, and watch as some 9 or 10 million immigrants have crossed the southern border without pause, I wondered if President Biden has taken the time to review his understanding of "perseverance" as his earlier counterpart and President Truman’s example of "riding a tiger."

President Trump admittedly doesn’t read books; I’m beginning to think that President Biden doesn’t read books either or totally ignores those wise lessons of others.

Truman’s exquisite example is a perfect explanation on how a president might best survey and examine a difficult situation.

Maybe this one liner is worth repeating and perhaps our current president might benefit from hearing it again:

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"A president either is constantly on top of events or, if he hesitates, events will soon be on top of him."

I’m thinking here that the "immigration" policy of this administration is firmly on top of our current president; he most likely has said, "I can’t."

How anyone could permit such a disorderly process to take place and create so many problems for this country without a plan in place to address it extends well beyond my imagination.

This immigration issue is obviously impacting some major cities across the land, and is quite disturbing to many voters, including many members of his own party.

And it seems vividly clear to a majority, and even his own allies like New York’s Governor Hochul, that these events represent a disorganized government.

I wonder too if President Truman might evaluate those actions of President Biden in assessing that issue of immigration today as most likely being "swallowed by the tiger."

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Oil baron, T. Boone Pickens, once offered this wise advice about having a plan:

“A plan without action is not a plan. It’s a speech.”

“A fool with a plan can outsmart a genius with no plan every time.”

Politicians these days have a tendency to give plenty of speeches, but good plans? Well, that seems always up for debate; it is that nature of politics.

Perhaps now is a good time to remind our leaders of the definition of perseverance:

"A continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure or opposition; the action of condition or an instance of persevering: steadfastness."

And that importance of reading books?

The fisher who draws his net too soon,

Won’t have any fish to sell;

The child who shuts up his book too soon,

Won’t learn any lessons well

(McGuffey’s Reader)

I’m hoping our next president learns a few lessons.

Pete Waters is a Sharpsburg resident who writes for The Herald-Mail.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: ‘Perseverance’ often better than ‘I can’t’