What Is Success?

By Ralph Waldo Emerson

To laugh often and love much;
To win the respect of intelligent persons and
the affection of children;
To earn the approval of honest critics and
endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;
To give of one’s self without the slightest
thought of return;
To have accomplished a task, whether by a
healthy child, a rescued soul, a garden
patch or a redeemed social condition;
To have played and laughed with enthusiasm
and sung with exaltation;
To know that even one life has breathed
easier because you have lived;
This is to have succeeded.

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