Grin
If you're up against a bruiser and you're getting knocked about --
Grin.
If you're feeling pretty groggy, and you're licked beyond a doubt --
Grin.
Don't let him see you're funking, let him know with every clout,
Though your face is battered to a pulp, your blooming heart is stout;
Just stand upon your pins until the beggar knocks you out --
And grin.
This life's a bally battle, and the same advice holds true
Of grin.
If you're up against it badly, then it's only one on you,
So grin.
If the future's black as thunder, don't let people see you're blue;
Just cultivate a cast-iron smile of joy the whole day through;
If they call you "Little Sunshine", wish that THEY'D no troubles, too --
You may -- grin.
Rise up in the morning with the will that, smooth or rough,
You'll grin.
Sink to sleep at midnight, and although you're feeling tough,
Yet grin.
There's nothing gained by whining, and you're not that kind of stuff;
You're a fighter from away back, and you WON'T take a rebuff;
Your trouble is that you don't know when you have had enough --
Don't give in.
If Fate should down you, just get up and take another cuff;
You may bank on it that there is no philosophy like bluff,
And grin.
poem by Robert William Service

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Related quotes
Smile and Grin
Smile even when the path is rough
Grin even when the competition is tough
Smile when the battle is fierce
Grin when the words[truth] pierce
Smile as the head aches in severe pain
Grin as your hard work brings no gain
Smile to the bank when the figures there are few
Grin to tank when all in it is dew
Smile with your siblings in sorrow
Grin with the tidings that says you borrow
Smile when you pursue but you seem lazy
Grin when the future seems hazy
Smile just as a love is lost
Grin though the cost is a lot
Smile as you lose your freedom
Grin as you belong to the thorn's kingdom
Smile when you fall into a ditch
Grin when you encounter a hitch
Smile when locked lies you door
Grin when you appear climbing but still lay on the floor
Smile when situations are not conforming
Grin when circumstance is not reforming
Smile when dreams are not becoming goals
Grin when goals are leading you to gaol
Smile as the flight to wealth is delayed
Grin as the bad news is relayed
Smile for your foes and enemies
Grin as you await your nemesis
Smile as you pay for what you bought not
Grin as you say words you thought not
Smile when you meet with a cheat
Grin when you move like a watch the speed of cheetahs
Smile as you pass through the journey of perseverance
Grin as you wish but must dwell in temperance
As a smile is a confidence of change
and Grin, an outward symbol for revolution residing within range.
poem by Adedolapo Olisa

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War is a game that is played with a smile. If you can't smile, grin. If you can't grin, keep out of the way till you can.
quote by Winston Churchill

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Wet
Not guilty, yer Honor . . . An' givin' me reasons,
I'd like for to plead this ‘ere change in the seasons,
Plus one flamin' goat with a terrible silly
Great grin on ‘is map wot ‘ud drive a man dilly
‘E lobs in me shop an' - "Is this enough rain for yeh?"
Honest yer Honor, I'd like to explain for yeh,
‘Twas n't ‘is tone, or ‘is talk of the weather
And ‘twas n't ‘is grin; but the whole lot together.
"This enough rain for yeh?" Stands there inquirin',
As if this ‘ere rain's the one thing I'm desirin'.
"Wet, ain't it?" ‘e grins, with ‘is mackintosh leakin'
All over me carpit . . . it's justice I'm seekin'
Plain justice, yer Honor. I wonder I'm sober.
You know ‘ow it poured thro' the whole of October,
Then floods in November - an' this ‘eathen image
Sez, "Rain enough for yeh?" That started the scrimmage.
"Wet, ain't it?" ‘e sez. Can a man claim I wrongs ‘im
Right there in me shop, when I ups an' I dongs ‘im?
For I done al me cash - as ‘e well must remember,
The coot - in this ‘ere ice-cream joint last September.
Yes, ice-cream, yer Honor. Cool drinks - then this weather
An' ‘im, an' ‘is talk, an' ‘is grin all together
Well - a man can stand so much. I ain't prone to fightin',
But, if a fine must be, well, make it a light ‘un.
poem by Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis

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All Work Together
My mommy told me an' the teacher told me, too,
There's all kinds of work that I can do:
Dry my dishes, sweep my floor,
But if we all work together it won't take very long.
We all work together with a wiggle and a giggle,
We all work together with a giggle and a grin.
We all work together with a wiggle and a giggle,
We all work together with a giggle and a grin.
My sister told me,
Brother told me, too,
Lots an' lotsa work
That I can do.
I can bring her candy.
Bring him gum.
But if we all work together
Hadn't oughtta take long. So
My daddy said,
And my grandpaw, too,
There's work, worka, work
For me to do.
I can paint my fence.
Mow my lawn.
But if we all work together,
Well, it shouldn't take long. So
I tell Mama an' Daddy,
Grampaw an' Granmaw, too,
I tell my sister an' my brother,
Lotsa work for you to do.
You can bring me pennie
And candy and gum;
But if we all work together
'Twon't take so very long. And so
We all work together with a wiggle and a giggle,
We all work together with a giggle and a grin.
We all work together with a wiggle and a giggle,
We all work together with a giggle and a grin.
With a wiggle and a giggle and a google and a goggle
And a jigger and a jagger and a giggle and a grin.
poem by Woody Guthrie

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Fish Again on Friday
Fish again on Friday how predictable is that
It’s getting to the stage I’d rather eat my hat
Gotta grin and bear it, have no other choice
I’ve tried to have my say, but I’m afraid I’ve lost my voice
Yeah you can’t have your pudding if you don’t eat your meat
So the teacher says and I shuffle on my feet
Gotta grin and bear it, it’s just the way it goes
But I can feel resistance and it’s good to feel it grow
I don’t know all the saints, not personally anyway
Jesus now Mohamed and my hair is turning grey
Now there’ll come a fatwa because of what I say
So many rules I just wanna walk away
Well its fish again on Friday but I’ll suppress my grin
I’ve sort of learned to face it and take it on the chin
But fish again on Friday, I’ve just about had my fill
Fish again on Friday, I’ve had it to the gills
Fish again on Friday. Who invented that?
Fish again on Friday I’m gonna eat my hat
poem by Kris Whelan

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Win
(hey, it aint over)
Me, I hope that Im crazy
I feel you driving and rolling the wheel
Slow down, let someone love you
Ohh, Ive never touched you since I started to feel
If theres nothing to hide me
Then youve never seen me hanging naked and wired
Somebody lied, but I say its hip
To be alive
Now your smile is spreading thin
Seems youre trying not to lose
Since Im not supposed to grin
All youve got to do is win
(thats all ya gotta do)
(ooh, it aint over)
Me, Im fresh on your pages
Secret thinker sometimes listening aloud
Life lies dumb on its heroes
Wear your wound with honor, make someone proud
Someone like you should not be allowed
To start any fires
Now your smile is spreading thin
Seems youre trying not to lose
Since Im not supposed to grin
All youve got to do is win
(thats all ya gotta do)
(ohh, it aint over)
Now your smile is spreading thin
Seems youre trying not to lose
Since Im not supposed to grin
All youve got to do is win
(thats all ya gotta do, ohh)
All youve got to do is win
(it aint over)
When your smile is spreading thin
(seek and believe in you)
Since youre trying not to lose
(it aint over, no, no)
Since Im not supposed to grin
(thats all ya gotta do)
All youve got to do is win
(it aint over, no,,, ohh)
(seek and believe in you)
All youve got to do is win
(it aint over, no, no)
Wo-ohh, all youve got
Is all youve got
(it aint over)
It aint over...
song performed by by David Bowie

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Baked Bean
How about the time
When Im feeling there
Feathers in science time
Take that bean down
Dig it in to me
Be sensible
Weathers in science time
Be ten only
How about waiting time
See you on my range
Cry big into
Be beneath the rays
Dont bring down
No
Being only ten
Is when life begins to grin
Being only ten
Is when life begins to grin
Being only ten
Is when life begins to ring
song performed by by Haircut 100

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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A Friend or Fiend?
Many a man are a wolf in sheep clothing
Many a friend are nothing but fiends
In morn-tide they wear the broadest grin
And in night time commit the most evil sin
Why should they practice their sorcery on me
And stuck a pin on a voodoo doll
And all my names therein they call
To cast a spell and make me sick
And tie my bones and make me weak
Then in the morning, that brodest grin
That even remains after such a sin
How can you stab me behind my back
Even knowing the room is not dark
Yet that is not what makes me sick
What makes me sick is your smiling beak
That keeps on mocking our so-called friendship
poem by Ahmad Savage

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The Height of the Ridiculous
I WROTE some lines once on a time
In wondrous merry mood,
And thought, as usual, men would say
They were exceeding good.
They were so queer, so very queer,
I laughed as I would die;
Albeit, in the general way,
A sober man am I.
I called my servant, and he came;
How kind it was of him
To mind a slender man like me,
He of the mighty limb.
"These to the printer," I exclaimed,
And, in my humorous way,
I added, (as a trifling jest,)
"There'll be the devil to pay."
He took the paper, and I watched,
And saw him peep within;
At the first line he read, his face
Was all upon the grin.
He read the next; the grin grew broad,
And shot from ear to ear;
He read the third; a chuckling noise
I now began to hear.
The fourth; he broke into a roar;
The fifth; his waistband split;
The sixth; he burst five buttons off,
And tumbled in a fit.
Ten days and nights, with sleepless eye,
I watched that wretched man,
And since, I never dare to write
As funny as I can.
poem by Oliver Wendell Holmes

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On Quitting
How much grit do you think you've got?
Can you quit a thing that you like a lot?
You may talk of pluck; it's an easy word,
And where'er you go it is often heard;
But can you tell to a jot or guess
Just how much courage you now possess?
You may stand to trouble and keep your grin,
But have you tackled self-discipline?
Have you ever issued commands to you
To quit the things that you like to do,
And then, when tempted and sorely swayed,
Those rigid orders have you obeyed?
Don't boast of your grit till you've tried it out,
Nor prate to men of your courage stout,
For it's easy enough to retain a grin
In the face of a fight there's a chance to win,
But the sort of grit that is good to own
Is the stuff you need when you're all alone.
How much grit do you think you've got?
Can you turn from joys that you like a lot?
Have you ever tested yourself to know
How far with yourself your will can go?
If you want to know if you have grit,
Just pick out a joy that you like, and quit.
It's bully sport and it's open fight;
It will keep you busy both day and night;
For the toughest kind of a game you'll find
Is to make your body obey your mind.
And you never will know what is meant by grit
Unless there's something you've tried to quit.
poem by Edgar Albert Guest

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The Tattoo
Wearing little
but pants
a grin and cigar
you laughed
out loud
your crazy grin.
Your arms covered
in scars
and
gang tattoos
from your
colorful past.
Still embedded in arm;
a bullet,
and in your head
the story
of how
and when
and why
Seeing you there
staggering drunk
in the pale
pre dawn light
I wonder:
are you drinking
because its Friday
or to forget
the naked cement floor
under your soles,
the roaches and rats
in the ally,
a tattoo that reads love
eternal
like me?
poem by Carsten Thomsen

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Badhead
so far i've not really stayed in touch
well you knew as much
it's no suprise that today
i'll get up around two from a lack of anything to do
and i might aswell just grin and bear it
because it's not worth the trouble of an argument
and you have not really stayed in touch
well i knew as much
its no suprise that today
i'll get up around two with nothing to do
except get a touch of flu
and i might aswell just grin and bear it
because it's not worth the trouble of an argument
and in any case i'd rather wear it
it's like a bad head in the morning
and i know
and i might aswell just grin and bear it
bcasue it's not worth the trouble of an argument
and in any case i'd rather wear it
it's like a bad head in the morning
song performed by by Blur from Parklife

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Bluejay Greeting and Old Cat Laughing
I. In the gray of the morning the bluejay is spring up and down on the branch of the old tree. Suddenly the bird dives towards the ground over and over. Startling my breakfast and making me wonder what’s happening under the window pane.
II. In the gloom I sit lonely with my love gone and the old cat off somewhere. Curiosity accompanies me out the door where I find a baby bluejay in the grass. The mother bird is screaming and diving towards the old cat keeping him at bay.
III. I grin with the old cat and laugh. The bluejay takes notice and comes at me. I quickly scoop up the old cat and retreat behind the door where the old cat and I grin at each other, then go about our day.

My Fairy
I have a fairy by my side
Which says I must not sleep,
When once in pain I loudly cried
It said "You must not weep"
If, full of mirth, I smile and grin,
It says "You must not laugh"
When once I wished to drink some gin
It said "You must not quaff".
When once a meal I wished to taste
It said "You must not bite"
When to the wars I went in haste
It said "You must not fight".
"What may I do?" at length I cried,
Tired of the painful task.
The fairy quietly replied,
And said "You must not ask".
Moral: "You mustn't."
poem by Lewis Carroll

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In Closing
STEP BACK INSIDE THE LIE AGAIN
YOU'LL FIND YOU'RE WEARING THIN
KILLING THE SYMPATHY AS YOU TAKE ANOTHER SWING AT ME
NOW FIGHTING YOUR INNER SELF AGAIN
LOSING TO WHAT YOU FEEL
SHIELDED BEHIND THE LIES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL REAL
NOW IT'S OVER AND I DON'T FEEL A THING
BUT YOU'RE TRYING TO BREAK THE SCAR AGAIN
YOUR SPIRIT IS BLEEDING AS YOU GRIN
BUT YOUR BRIDGE KEEPS ON BURNING AT BOTH ENDS
IN YOUR MIND
THE ENDING SEEMS TO BE SO FAR FROM WHAT YOU NEED
TAKE BACK THE MEMORIES AS YOU SMILE TO HIDE THE PAIN FROM ME
NOW SHUT DOWN THE CURIOSITY THAT BRINGS YOU HERE AGAIN
NO SENSE OF PURITY AS YOU TRY TO TAKE THE LIFE FROM ME NOW
IT'S OVER AND I DON'T FEEL A THING
BUT YOU'RE TRYING TO BREAK THE SCAR AGAIN
YOUR SPIRIT IS BLEEDING AS YOU GRIN
BUT YOUR BRIDGE KEEPS ON BURNING AT BOTH ENDS
NOTHING THAT YOU EVER SAY COULD EVER POSSIBLYERASE ALL THE HATEFUL THINGS YOU DID
AND NOW I'M THROUGH WITH YOU
NOTHING THAT YOU EVER SAY COULD EVER POSSIBLY ERASE ALL THE HATEFUL THINGS YOU DID
AND NOW I'M THROUGH WITH YOU
NOTHING YOU COULD EVER SAY
NOTHING YOU COULD EVER SAY
NOTHING YOU COULD EVER SAY
NOTHING YOU COULD EVER SAY
IT'S OVER AND I DON'T FEEL A THING
BUT YOU'RE TRYING TO BREAK THE SCAR AGAIN
YOUR SPIRIT IS BLEEDING AS YOU GRIN
BUT YOUR BRIDGE KEEPS ON BURNING AT BOTH ENDS
HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY NOW
HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY NOW
HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY NOW
HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY NOW
song performed by by 12 Stones

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Contempt of War
The contempt of war
With spewn bodies and limbs
A war cry
A man dies
There is anger within
They face each other
Tempers flare
Eyes bulging red
You lose control
The anger burns within
Screaming, shouting
Cursing and swearing
Burning rages
Fuels carnage and mayhem
The never ending screams
Killing, maiming
They first fight with pride
But as the battle rages
They start to fight for their lives
The sea of turmoil
Of body and souls
When will this carnage end?
The ongoing battle
Gives death a grin
Misbegotten war
Why plague our lands
Why must we let death?
Smile with a grin
Have we done something wrong?
Have we committed a sin?
Fatigue getting tired
Can barely stand ground
Feeling wary, feeling sad
When will this carnage end?
The smoke clears
On desolate grounds
The moans of death is all around
Alone figure stands in shock in pain
As he listens to moans of dying men
The pain is real the war cry's fade
As he re-enacts the days
That goes round in his head
Of the memories of pain
Of a contemptible war
poem by Kaila George

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A Beautiful Person
When you smile:
Your eyes shine so bright,
you get this grin on your face that could melt ice
your cheeks get rosy
you are a beautiful sight
When you laugh:
Your eyes get a sparkle in them
You get this grin on your face that
will make others laugh with you
Your entire body starts to shake
You are a beautiful sight
When you lay sleeping:
Your brows draw together
Your lips pucker up
You will tense up, then relax
You are so peaceful
You are a beautiful sight
When you are just you:
You have the most beautiful eyes
Your face is so express full
You make the person you are with relax
You are there for me always
You are a Beautitiful Person
poem by Mohammad Hassan

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Black Lung
Walkin up with winkin eyes
Seen that tight-lipped grin
I could tell from a mile away
Boy you werent my kin
You best put a bridle on bridle on that tongue
Save your breath for breathin buddy
An run - run
Whos that feller next to me
With the big house grin
Speakin from the left hand
An jumpin out his skin
Well, maybe hes my old man
The one with the wooden eyes
Youd think after all this time
Hed find a better place to hide
Cuttin up with battin eyes
I seen that paint on smile
Aw girl I could see you comin
For a country mile
You bes put a bridle on bridle on that tongue
Save your breath for breathin girl
Im talkin from black lungs
song performed by by 16 Horsepower

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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From the Bush
The Channel fog has lifted –
And see where we have come!
Round all the world we've drifted,
A hundred years from "home".
The fields our parents longed for –
Ah! we shall ne'er know how –
The wealth that they were wronged for
We'll see as strangers now!
The Dover cliffs have passed on –
In the morning light aglow –
That our fathers looked their last on
A weary time ago.
Now grin, and grin your bravest!
We need be strong to fight;
For you go home to picture
And I go home to write.
Hold up your head in England,
Tread firm on London streets;
We come from where the strong heart
Of all Australia beats!
Hold up your head in England
However poor you roam!
For no men are your betters
Who never sailed from home!
From a hundred years of hardships –
'Tis ours to tell the cost –
From a thousand miles of silence
Where London would be lost;
From where the glorious sunset
On sweeps of mulga glows –
Ah! we know more than England,
And more than Europe knows!
Hold up your head in London,
However poor you come,
For no man is your better
Who never sailed from home!
Our "home" and foreign fathers,
Where none but men dared go,
Have done more for the White Man
Than England e'er shall know!
poem by Henry Lawson

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Hollow Man
I think I have become one of the hollow men
As I shine on the outside more these days
I can feel the outside feeding on my inside
Leaves a growing darkness in its place
I think I have become one of the hollow men
I think I have become one of the lonely
Now that everybody talks to me
I feel I have become one of the empty
Hollow men can stop you with the twinkling of an eye
Hollow men can take you without even reaching out
Hollow men have got you long before you realise
The poison paralyses
I think I have become one of a pair of men
It's a feeling I've been having for some time
I look down upon myself and watch my movements
A blind eye sees the fragile vandalised
Watch this cold world dishing up these endless hollow men
Find us anywhere you look
Come and meet our friends
Stand us in our silly clothes
Put our batteries in
Line us up like fairground ducks
Watch us grin and grin
See the lies behind our eyes..
See the will to win
We'll buy you and we'll sell you
But perhaps we'll save your skin....
Sit quietly and listen to the breeze...
The hollow and the lonely listen too
Sniff the air for something we can use
We're tin hard and we rattle when we're shaken
song performed by by Marillion

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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