Mother to Son - Langston Hughes

courtesy poetryfoundation.org:

Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So, boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps.
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now—
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin',
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

___________________

This was one of the first poems that ever truly "hit" me. Not coincidentally, it is my mother's favorite poem, and one that she read to me from a young age. I think that this poem addresses one of the most universal sentiments in all of human existence: That life, on the whole, is painful. We like to discuss life as if it were a party or amusement park or something of the sort, but I believe that this glamorization is simply self-deception. Not to say that life isn't amazing, wonderful, beautiful, etc. (as a great man once said about life: "it beats the alternative.") But it is also very hard. I can't imagine how hard it was for Mr. Hughes' mother (for the sake of this analysis, I will assume this poem is based out of some autobiographic truth). Growing up a white male is distinctly different than growing up a poor black woman at a time when desegregation was a bleak hope for the future. Regardless of race, however, I feel that we can all take something away from this poem: That our lives aren't, and never will be, "a crystal stair", but that we will face our share of torn-up boards on our journey.