Ten thousand hours
To become proficient
Activate your higher powers
Nonetheless, insufficient
To ensure you’re omniscient.
Years of practice
Focused execution
Avoiding what distracts us
And dissolution
To reach the desired solution.
There are many examples
Emily Dickinson comes to mind
Among modern samples
Beatles and Bill Gates we find
Dylan and Stoppard intertwined.
8760 hours in one year
Means ten thousand is a lot
Eons of sweat and tear
Many efforts come to naught
Angst over what fate has wrought.
To write and rewrite
Go blank, then start again
Searching for a path that’s right
Forgetting food and pain
Hoping inspiration does not wane.
Let’s not forget talent
Not always the winning card
One may start out gallant
Find the going hard
Be “Hoist with his own petard.”
For every famous person
A thousand dead troubadours
The path can often worsen
Narrow to gated doors
Blocked by critics one abhors.
A toast to perseverance
Those who serve their time
Escape their disappearance
Make the arduous climb
Celebrate their prime.
