13/04/2026
I can still remember back in college, in our speech class, we were tasked to look for a speech that we would deliver in front of the class as part of our final performance, and this is the one I chose.
It was originally a poem titled "The Optimist," written by McLandburgh Wilson around 1915. While it started as a witty newspaper rhyme, it took on a life of its own during the Great Depression. Adolph Levitt, the man who invented the automatic donut machine, found the poem and posted it in his Mayflower Donut shops. It became a national symbol of resilience, eventually expanding from a simple four-line jingle into a full motivational speech as leaders and speakers added verses about "silver linings" and "opportunities" to help bolster the public’s spirit.
Here it is:
THE OPTIMIST’S MOTTO
(The Extended Version)
'Twixt the optimist and pessimist
The difference is droll:
The optimist sees the doughnut,
But the pessimist sees the hole.
The optimist sees the opportunity
In every difficulty he may face;
The pessimist sees the difficulty
In every opportunity’s place.
The optimist sees the silver lining
In every cloud that’s in the sky;
The pessimist sees the coming rain
And heaves a heavy, hopeless sigh.
One sees the sun through the window pane,
The other sees the dust on the glass;
One sees the gold in the ripening grain,
The other the weeds in the grass.
Then as you ramble on through life, my friend,
Whatever be your goal,
Keep your eye upon the doughnut,
And not upon the hole.
