About "Desiderata"
Max Ehrmann wrote "Desiderata" in 1927, inspired by his personal need to guide himself through life. He didn't intend to publish it initially, but his widow Bertha K. Ehrmann published it in 1948, following his passing in 1945.
It gained popularity in the mid-1950s when Reverend Frederick Kates, rector of Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore, distributed it as a devotional material for his congregation. He used the church's letterhead, including the founding date of 1692, which led to the mistaken belief that it was found in the church and dated from that year.
"Desiderata" became widely circulated in the 1960s and 1970s, often as a poster, and was embraced by the peace movement and counterculture. It remains popular today, admired for its wisdom and timeless advice on finding inner peace and living a fulfilling life.
Desiderata:
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
04/27/25