Flower power	
Thoughts—Finding Fault	
QUICK CHECK:
The more criticism I get, the more it gives me a 
stronger urge to win.  So I try harder.        —Rain	
A little seed lay in the ground
And soon began to sprout;	
Now, which of all the flowers around,	
Shall I, it thought, come out?	
The seed could be heard saying, "I don’t care to be 
a rose.  It has thorns.  I have no desire to be a lily.  
It’s too colorless.  And I certainly wouldn’t want to 	
be a violet.  It’s too small, and furthermore, 	
it grows too close to the ground."
And so it criticized each flower,	
That supercilious seed,	
Until it woke one 
summer hour
And found itself 	
a weed!	
When you’re criticizing others and are	
finding here and there	
A fault or two to speak of, or a weakness	
you can tear;	
When you’re blaming someone’s meanness	
or accusing one of pelf—	
It’s time that you went out to take a	
walk around yourself.	
There’s lots of human failures in the	
average of us all,	
And lots of grave shortcomings in the	
short ones and the tall;	
But when we think of evils men should	
lay upon the shelves,	
It’s time we all went out to take a walk	
around ourselves.	
We need so often in this life
this balancing of scales,	
This seeing how much in us wins and	
how much in us fails;	
Before you judge another — just to lay	
him on the shelf—	
It would be a splendid plan to take a	
walk around yourself.	
I will not judge my brother until I have walked two 
weeks in his moccasins. —Sioux Indians
He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.
   —Abraham Lincoln
To escape criticism — do nothing, say nothing, be 
nothing.   —Elbert Hubbard
The moon could not go on shining if it paid any 
attention to the little dogs that bark at it.
The strength of criticism lies in the weakness of the 
thing criticized.      —Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Don't find fault; find a remedy. —Henry Ford	
1. Poem at top left:  During what 3 situations is it 	
suggested you take a "walk around yourself"?	
2. What do you think the author meant by "take a 	
walk around yourself"?	
3. Sioux:  Do not judge until after doing what?
4. According to Lincoln, who has a right to 
 criticize?
5. Hubbard: To escape criticism, do what 3 things?
6. Longfellow: a) The strength (or power) of 
 criticism lies in what?  b) Then, if you are weak, 	
criticism will be ________.  c) And, if you are 
strong, criticism will be _______.	
7. Ford: Instead of finding fault, find what?
8. Rain: What urge comes from criticism?
9. Poem at top right:  a) Define "supercilious."  
 b) About what was the little seed complaining?  	
c) What happened to the complaining little seed?  
d) In your opinion, what lesson is this poem 	
 trying to teach?  
10. a) Which quote do you like?  b) Why?
Bloom
where
you
are
planted
Thoughts & Quotes