"Go placidly amidst the noise and haste...."

Forty some years ago what money I earned went for food, clothing and shelter. There wasn't a lot left over for 'the finer things in life' - like art work - which is why my walls were mostly decorated with posters. One of my favourites was one printed on 'parchment'. It was called Desiderata. At the bottom of the poster were these words: "Found in old Saint Paul's Church, Baltimore; Dated 1692". (Double click on above image to make it readable.)
So many of the lines spoke to me, like: "Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself." and: "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." Many times reading the wisdom in the Desiderata did help right my world and bring a peacefulness to my soul.

 It was years before I knew that this man, Max Ehrmann (1872-1945) was the author of Desiderata which is the Latin plural for desideratum, "desired things". Ehrmann did not begin his writing career until age forty. He was 54 when he wrote Desiderata which did not become well-known until twenty years after he died.

At one time, I also had a copy of this book of his poems. None of his other writing affected me as much as Desiderata did. I don't remember any of his other writings, but I've always remembered "Go placidly amidst the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence."
Recently on an episode of HGTV's "Room Crashers", I saw the first line of Desiderata painted on a wall of the makeover room which tells me that there are people today who admire Max Ehrmann's words as much as I do.