Poetry About Luck

Luck is the invisible hand that occasionally tilts the world in our favor. These poems explore the mystery of the coincidence - the narrow miss, the unexpected find, and the profound humility that comes from realizing how much of our lives depends on things we cannot control.

From the four-leaf clover in the grass to the timing of a chance encounter, luck is the poetry of probability. This collection honors the moments when the universe winks at us, and the wisdom required to know when to hold on and when to let go.

Featured Poems

The Half-Second Margin

Reflecting on the 'close calls' that define a life.

A red light that lasted just a heartbeat too long, the shoelace that broke while I was tied to the door.

Small irritations that were, in the math of the larger day, guardians of the breath I am still taking now.

We do not praise the ghost of the thing that didn't happen, but we live in the quiet of the luck we didn't notice.

- Julian Thorne

The Found Coin

The small omens that brighten a day.

It was face up in the gutter, a silver eye looking at the sun, waiting for a hand to reclaim it from the anonymity of the street.

I am not a believer in magic, but I am a believer in beauty, and finding a small fortune in the middle of a Monday feels like a whispered 'hello'.

I'll keep it in my pocket, not for its value in the shop, but for its value as a sign that the world is still watching.

- Clara Holm

The Loaded Dice

On the nature of unearned privilege and fortune.

I was born into a weather that was mostly blue sky, with a map in my hand and a roof that was already built.

To call this 'success' is to lie to the mirror; it is the luck of the draw in the oldest game of all.

- Silas Vance

Classic Voices

The World is Too Much With Us (Excerpt)

by William Wordsworth (1807)

While about nature, Wordsworth laments the loss of the 'fortunate' connection to the spiritual world.

Great God! I’d rather be A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn; So might I, standing on this pleasant lea, Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

If (Excerpt)

by Rudyard Kipling (1910)

A classic poem about dealing with both 'Triumph and Disaster' and the luck they bring.

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

Micro Verses

Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.

- Seneca

The harder I work, the luckier I seem to get.

- Anonymous

A four-leaf clover is just a leaf that forgot it had a limit.

- Elias Thorne

Gratitude is the best way to keep the luck coming.

- Maren Grey

Deeper Explorations

Chance Encounters

The people we met by 'accident' who changed everything.

The Right Seat

The train was crowded, and I only sat there because the window was dirty.

Three stops later, the rest of my life walked through the door.

- Elena Vance

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