Have you ever felt the weight of the world pressing down on your heart?
In those moments, a few carefully chosen words can light the way forward.
Here are 10 short inspiration poems that serve as reminders of hope, resilience, and the beauty of our journey.
Let’s jump right in!
My favorite short inspirational poem
#1 “Inalienable” by Amos R. Wells
Two things are yours that no man’s wealth can buy:
The air, and time;
And, having these, all fate you may defy,
All summits climb.
While you can draw the fresh and vital breath,
And own the day,
No enemy, not Hate, nor Fear, nor Death,
May bring dismay.
Breathe deeply! Use the minutes as they fly!
Trust God in all!
Thus will you live the life that cannot die,
Nor ever fall.
“Inalienable” by Amos R. Wells resonates with me because it emphasizes that we possess two priceless treasures: air and time.
This poem inspires me to embrace each moment and reminds me that with faith, I can overcome fear and doubt.
It’s powerful message resonates deeply, offering a sense of freedom and empowerment.
9 more short inspiration poems
#2 “The Best He Can” by Unknown
It is not always the doing well
That measures the fame of a man;
The hero is he, who the world can see
Is doing the best he can.
#3 “Song” by Langston Hughes
Lovely, dark, and lonely one,
Bare your bosom to the sun,
Do not be afraid of light
You who are a child of night.
Open wide your arms to life,
Whirl in the wind of pain and strife,
Face the wall with the dark closed gate,
Beat with bare, brown fists
And wait.
#4 “Now Is the Time” by Sarah K. Bolton
Now is the time to love, and, better still,
To serve our loved ones, over passing ill
To rise triumphant; thus the perfect flower
Of life shall come to fruitage: wealth amass
For grandest giving ere the time be gone.
Be glad to-day, to-morrow may bring tears;
Be brave to-day, the darkest night will pass,
And golden rays will usher in the dawn:
Who conquers now shall rule the coming years.
#5 “In the Sunshine” by Louisa M. Alcott
Far away there in the sunshine are
My highest aspirations.
I cannot reach them,
But I can look up
And see their beauty,
Believe in them, and
Try to follow where they lead.
#6 “Life” by William Makepeace Thackeray
Life is a mirror: if you frown at it,
it frowns back;
if you smile,
it returns the greeting.
#7 “To My Heart, Bidding It Have No Fear” by William Butler Yeats
Be you still, be you still, trembling heart;
Remember the wisdom out of the old days:
Him who trembles before the flame and the flood,
And the winds that blow through the starry ways,
Let the starry winds and the flame and the flood
Cover over and hide, for he has no part
With the proud, majestical multitude.
#8 “Live to Learn” by Bayard Taylor
Learn to live, and live to learn;
Ignorance like a fire doth burn,
Little tasks make large return.
Toil, when willing, groweth less;
“Always play” may seem to bless,
Yet the end is weariness.
Live to learn, and learn to live,
Only this content can give;
Feckless joys are fugitive
#9 “Good Life, Long Life” by Ben Jonson
It is not growing like a tree
In bulk, doth make man better be;
Or standing long an oak, three hundred year,
To fall a log at last, dry, bald, and sear:
A lily of a day
Is fairer far in May,
Although it fall and die that night,—
It was the plant and flower of Light.
In small proportions we just beauties see,
And in short measures life may perfect be.
#10 “I am but a small-winged bird” by Sidney Lanier
I am but a small-winged bird:
But I will conquer the big world
As the bee-martin beats the crow,
By attacking it always from Above.