Maya Angelou

Phoenix Among Us

lillian10 Comments

Still I rise
writ Maya Angelou,
ParaOlympians say too.
Said John Lewis while making
good trouble and Martin Luther King
as he dreamed aloud that day. Say organ
donors and recipients. Smiles Albus Dumbledore
on the big screen every time we see Fawkes reborn.


NAPOWRIMO Day 20. Prompt: Write a poem that includes an animal that shows up in myths and legends as a metaphor for some aspect of a contemporary person’s life. Include one spoken phrase. Image from Pixabay.com

Click here to see and watch Maya Angelou read her iconic poem STILL I RISE.

Also shared at OLN April 23rd with dVerse, the virtual pub for poets around the globe.

Brooding (from the lines of Maya Angelou)

lillian5 Comments

When I think about myself
there is a deep brooding.
The day hangs heavy
no sound falls.
I see you,
shadows on the wall
just beyond my reaching.

Lying, thinking
I almost remember
when you came to me, unbidden.
Your smile, delicate
a young body, light,
your skin like dawn.
We saw beyond our seeming.

One innocent spring
it occurs to me now,
the dust of ancient pages.

A cento (poem made up of lines taken from other poems) written for NAPOWRIMO, the final day.

Every line in this poem, is the first line in one of Maya Angelou’s poems. The poems are listed below, in the order of their appearance:

When I Think About Myself
My Arkansas
Greyday
After
Thank You, Lord
Life Doesn’t Frighten Me
Slave Coffle
Alone
I Almost Remember
When You Come to Me
Woman Me
To Beat the Child Was Bad Enough
Passing Time
We Saw Beyond Our Seeming
Now Long Ago
Changing
Communication II: The Student