Well, son, I'll tell you:

Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

It's had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up,

And places with no carpet on the floor - Bare.

But all the time I'se been a-climbin' on,

And reachin' landin's,

And turnin' corners,

And sometimes goin' in the dark

Where there ain't been no light.

So boy, don't you turn back.

Don't you set down on the steps

'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.

Don't you fall now -

For I'se still goin', honey, I'se still climbin',

And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

—“Mother to Son,”
Langston Hughes

What does his mother compare to the troubles and difficulties of life?

splintered wood with tacks in it
an easy climb from one step to another
a warning call not to fall down
a beautiful crystal stairway