Don’t Cry Because It’s Over, Smile Because It Happened

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“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss

Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904 – 1991) was popularly known as “Dr. Seuss”—the writer behind some of the bestselling and most-loved children’s books. His works have been in movie and broadway adaptations such as “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and “The Lorax”. His trademark rhymes and whimsical characters in his stories made his pen name “Dr. Seuss” an authority in the children’s literature genre.

Geisel’s love for rhymes began as a child when his mom would chant rhymes to soothe them to sleep. But before the birth of “Dr. Seuss”, there was “Seuss”. Geisel was once a typical, trouble-making teenager in Dartmouth College. He wrote for the school’s humor magazine “Jack-O-Lantern” and became the editor-in-chief. It was cut short when the school heard of their drinking party in campus. It didn’t stop him from writing articles for the humour magazine but he had to make hide his real identity—hence the birth of “Seuss”.

He had a long way to go before finally publishing his first children book which was rejected 27 times. His popularity soared after the publication of “The Cat in The Hat”, a book intended for kids who have just learned how to read. His first biggest success was followed by other bestselling books such as “Green Eggs and Ham”, and “Hop on Pop”.

The quote above is a reminder to see the positive side of life. These are some of the similar ideas on optimism despite the circumstance:

“The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection.” – Thomas Paine

“I was smiling yesterday, I am smiling today and I will smile tomorrow. Simply because life is too short to cry for anything.” -Santosh Kalwar