PAD 7: Not Lucky, But Blessed

 

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PAD Challenge, Day 7 prompt: write a luck poem. The luck could be good luck or bad luck. Maybe it's just the luck of the draw, or a contemplation of whether luck even exists.

Quoting the ancient Roman stoic philosopher Seneca, my father once told me that there is no such thing as luck, except when "preparedness meets opportunity." He went on to explain that I must do my own part no matter what, and never wait around for "luck". This poem is a tribute to that wise advice.

Not Lucky, But Blessed

Believing in and relying on luck
More than once has got a man stuck,
It's far more important to be well prepared
So that all of one's goals be attempted and dared.

On luck are too many to often relied,
And often they blame it for ventures untried.
But preparedness, grit, and some stubborn ol' pluck
Far outweigh in merit all random, pure luck.

The virtues form character (diligence, too),
But luck forms a laziness hard to undo.
One must not put all of the eggs in one basket,
Or else face defeat if things fail what one ask it.

Some say it's not what, but it's who that you know
That often gets one to where one wants to go,
But I disagree, for it's best to prepare:
Opportunities often catch one unaware.

Luck makes empty promises, precipitates woes,
And often can place one at mercy of foes.
If you find results far exceed e'en your best,
Consider that you are not lucky, but blessed!

Despite all this praise for the merit of effort,
Sometimes one can find all one's goals at the scaffold,
So we must remember Divine Providence
When all of our efforts seem useless and spent.

Depend not on luck, but on God's providence,
And have ye strong faith in His own faithfulness,
For He keeps His word and revokes not His call,
And He'll remain with you through failures and falls.

Our God is the King and all things do His will,
And He has a plan for our good, not our ill.
He does not ask us to always have success,
But to put in our effort with great faithfulness.