Author is
unknown
A “chance in life”
means a chance to become a statesman, an artist, a physician, an inventor, or
to do some other useful work. Many boys and girls are unable to use their opportunities
and to a great extent, their lives are a failure. Others take advantage of
every opportunity, work during all their waking hours, and if a very difficult
position is presented to them, they rejoice in trying to conquer it. One of the
most expert mining engineers was asked one day to explain his success. A
far-away look came into his eyes as he answered the question simply: “My father
was a brilliant engineer. A great career was ahead of him, but when I was five
years old he was struck down by fever. The day before he died, he put his hand
in mine and said “I’ll have to leave my chance to you, son; don’t waste it!”.
As I grew up I firmly believed that I must do my own work and his too. I never
wasted a moment; I never lost an opportunity to get ahead. I felt all the time
that I was being pushed forward by some invisible power. The greatest pleasure
that I had as a young man was when my employer said to me that I was worth two
ordinary assistants”.
To use another person’s chance as well as yours means to do your work a little
better than you would otherwise do it. You cannot stop halfway to success. Even
if you have no special ability and become, as most of us do, a maker or seller
of food or of clothing or of some other articles of use, you must try a little harder
to have your work as perfect as possible. A “chance
in life” means a chance to do your best to
serve your people in some way or other.
