“Little by little,” an acorn said,
As it slowly sank in its mossy bed;
“I am improving day by day,
Hidden deep in the earth away.”
Little by little each day it grew;
Little by little it sipped the dew;
Downward it sent out a thread-like root;
Up in the air sprung a tiny shoot.
Day after day, and year after year,
Little by little the leaves appear;
And the slender branches spread far and wide,
Til the mighty oak is the forest’s pride.

“Little by little,” said a thoughtful boy,
“Moment by moment I’ll well employ,
Learning a little every day,
And not spending all my time in play;
And still this rule in my mind shall dwell,
‘Whatever I do, I will do it well.’
Little by little I’ll learn to know
The treasured wisdom of long ago;
And one of these days perhaps we’ll see
That the world will be the better for me.”
And do you not think that this simple plan
Made him a wise and useful man?