by Douglas Malloch (1877 - 1938)
Be the best of whatever you are
Language: English
If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill, Be a scrub in the valley -- but be The best little scrub by the side of the rill; Be a bush if you can't be a tree. If you can't be a bush be a bit of the grass, And some highway happier make; If you can't be a muskie then just be a bass -- But the liveliest bass in the lake! We can't all be captains, we've got to be crew, There's something for all of us here, There's big work to do, and there's lesser to do, And the task you must do is the near. If you can't be a highway then just be a trail, If you can't be the sun be a star; It isn't by size that you win or you fail -- Be the best of whatever you are!
Text Authorship:
- by Douglas Malloch (1877 - 1938) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Be the best of whatever you are", 2009 [medium voice or low voice and piano] [ sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-11-23
Line count: 16
Word count: 147