It's not the Critic Who Counts

It is not the critic who counts,
not the man who points out
how the strong (wo)man stumbles
or where the doer of deedscould have done them better.

The credit belongs to the (wo)man
who is actually in the arena,
whose face is marredby dust and sweat and blood,
who strives valiantly,
who errs and comes short again and again
because there is no effortwithout error and shortcomings,
who knows the great devotion,
who spends himself in a worthy cause,
who at the best knows in the end
the high achievement of triumph
and who at worst,
if he fails while daring greatly,
knows his place shall never be
with those timid and cold souls
who know neither victory nor defeat.
~ Theodore Roosevelt, 26th US President