From the recording Bring That Laurel Home
“Great designs are not accomplished without enthusiasm of some sort. It is the inspiration of everything great. Without it no man is to be feared, and with it none despised.” – Christian N. Bovee (1820-1904)
This song is about passion/enthusiasm. Clark holds enthusiasm up as the characteristic to be sought, but I would like to suggest going one step further - to passion. The steps are excitement leading to enthusiasm leading to passion. When one is passionate about a project or an idea, then there is nothing that can stop that person. He/she is willing to overcome any and all obstacles in order to reach the desired end.
Lyrics
Bring That Laurel Home
Words and music by Richard H. Hill
Refrain:
You gotta dig deep
There’s gold hidden in the ground
You gotta reach high
Aim for the sun and the moon
You gotta stretch real wide for these wings to fly
Believe in yourself, let the rest go by
Everybody’s got dreams but the laurel’s gonna go
To the one whose steady and strong
Tortoise and the hare in a race one day we’re told
Rabbit was a laughing and soon lost sight of the goal
Everybody thought, “What a piece of cake
Hare’s got the race right out of the gate.” But the tortoise instead focused his head
And brought that laurel home
Refrain
There once was a man who lost everything he loved
He stopped complaining and figured what must be done
His friends all laughed when they saw the mess
But the man had a dream, he’d give it his best
Stone by stone, blood, sweat and bone
He brought that laurel home
Refrain
If you’re hanging your head along the side of the road
Hopin' there’s a bus that’ll come and save your soul
That driver don’t care if you’re lost and gone
And the folks in the seats sing the same sad song
Let the bus go by, catch your dream and fly
And bring that laurel home
Refrain