Thoughts on Dr Maya Angelou

 

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Dr Maya Angelou

 

 

I first read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in one day after I found it in the library when I was in the 6th grade.

I was fascinated. I was inspired. I was hooked.

It was my first introduction into writing by a woman. No, by a black woman, or someone who looked like me.

Before her book, I had no idea that books existed about people who looked like me, written by people who looked like me.

I went through EVERY book she had written by the end of the school year.

I read every poem. I listened every time she spoke.

And the highlight of my 11th grade year was hearing her read  On the Pulse of Morning IN PERSON at Bill Clinton’s Inauguration.

I still get chills when I hear her read her work.

So powerful.

So when I heard she had died this morning, I was heartbroken.

You see,  because of her, I realized that I loved to read.

Because of her, I realized that I like to write.

Because of her, I realized the power that words can have.

She was a blessing.

She was my mentor in my head.

She was so so so inspiring.

Her last tweet just a few days ago was one I read at the time and wrote down. One of Dr Maya Angelou’s little gems I thought. Because at the time, it was just what I needed to hear.

 

Listen to yourself and in that quietude you might hear the voice of God.

— Maya Angelou (@DrMayaAngelou) May 23, 2014

RIP DR MAYA ANGELOU. You will forever be missed.