"I Wish" And "I Will

 "I Wish" And "I Will"

Poet: Nixon Waterman

"I Wish" and "I Will," so my grandmother says,
Were two little boys in the long, long ago,
And "I Wish" used to sigh while "I Will" used to try
For the things he desired, at least that's what my
Grandma tells me, and she ought to know.

"I Wish" was so weak, so my grandmother says,
That he longed to have someone to help him about,
And while he'd stand still and look up at the hill
And sigh to be there to go coasting, "I Will"
Would glide past him with many a shout.

They grew to be men, so my grandmother says,
And all that "I Wish" ever did was to dream--
To dream, and to sigh that life's hill was so high,
While "I Will" went to work and soon learned, if we try,
Hills are never so steep as they seem.

"I Wish" lived in want, so my grandmother says,
But "I Will" had enough and a portion to spare:
Whatever he thought was worth winning he sought
With an earnest and patient endeavor that brought
Of blessings a bountiful share.

And whenever my grandma hears any one "wish,"
A method she seeks, in his mind to instill,
For increasing his joys, and she straightway employs
The lesson she learned from the two little boys
Whose names were "I Wish" and "I Will."