The Guy in the Glass by Dale Wimbrow

A Word A Day had this thought:

It's like, at the end, there's this surprise quiz: Am I proud of me? I gave my life to become the person I am right now. Was it worth what I paid?
-Richard Bach, writer (1936- ) (author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull.)


This thought reminded me of a song in the musical Lost Horizon. The song went something like:

When you look in the mirror,
Do you like what you see,
If you like what you see,
Then you are the person you ought to be,
because everything you do, reflects on you.


And then I remembered the classic "The Guy in the Glass." This poem has been floating around the internet for decades. There are a number of variations. It appears to have been written by Dale Wimbrow (1895-1954).

When you get what you want in your struggle for pelf,
And the world makes you King for a day,
Then go to the mirror and look at yourself,
And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn't your Father, or Mother, or Wife,
Who judgement upon you must pass.
The feller whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the guy staring back from the glass.

He's the feller to please, never mind all the rest,
For he's with you clear up to the end,
And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test
If the guy in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum,
And think you're a wonderful guy,
But the man in the glass says you're only a bum
If you can't look him straight in the eye.

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,
And get pats on the back as you pass,
But your final reward will be heartaches and tears
If you've cheated the guy in the glass.

copyrighted by Dale Wimbrow in 1934


Steve Pavlina explains that pelf is another word for wealth.


Integrity is important.


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