"Desiderata" (Latin: "things desired") is an early 1920s prose poem by the American writer Max Ehrmann. Although he copyrighted it in 1927, he distributed copies of it without a required copyright notice during 1933 and c. 1942, thereby forfeiting his US copyright.

What is the story behind Desiderata?

The author is Max Ehrmann, a poet and lawyer from Terre Haute, Indiana, who lived from 1872 to 1945. It has been reported that Desiderata was inspired by an urge that Ehrmann wrote about in his diary: "I should like, if I could, to leave a humble gift -- a bit of chaste prose that had caught up some noble moods."

What is the message of Desiderata by Max Ehrmann?

Written in 1927, Max Ehrmann's didactic poem (a morally instructional piece) Desiderata (Latin for 'desired things') offers a code for life emphasizing tolerance, inclusion and optimism. The poem is full of wise sayings and gentle guidance.