You Tell On Yourself
You tell on yourself by the friends you seek,
By the very manner in which you speak,
By the way you employ your leisure time,
By the use you make of dollar and dime.
u
You tell what you are by the things you wear,
By the spirit in which you burdens bear,
By the kind of things at which you laugh,
By the records you play on the phonograph.
u
You tell what you are by the way you walk,
By the things of which you delight to talk,
By the manner in which you bear defeat,
By so simple a thing as how you eat.
y
By the books you choose from the well-filled shelf:
In these ways and more, you tell on yourself.
p
— Author Unknown

4 Comments:
I wonder if we could change the "on" to "of" in this poem. :) ("I tell of myself...")
Excellent point Anne - that sounds better, yes. I wonder if when this was written (sounds like late 1800s or early 1900s) telling on yourself might have had a more elegant - less of a juvenile - ring to it.
I think also it would be kinder and gentler if it read WE, rather than YOU (WE TELL OF OURSELVES>>>)
The changes make it softer, yes, but that's not the point of the poem. It's a caution; it's strong mussar; behave well or you will ruin your reputation. It's not meant to be kind and gentle.
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