RENOWNED AUTHOR AND POET, MAYA ANGELOU IS DEAD (1928 - 2014)

Award winning author, civil rights activist, poet and phenomenal woman Maya Angelou has died at the age of 86. BBC news reported her death this afternoon. Maya had reportedly been battling serious health problems. 

Maya was born Marguerite Ann Johnson on April 28 1928. She had a tumultuous childhood with her parents' marriage being in calamity which eventually ended in divorce, and as a toddler she experienced sexual molestation at the hands of her mother's boyfriend. 

Despite having a difficult childhood and living a hard life as a young adult, Maya emerged to become one of the most influential black female voices in the world. 

Maya’s civil rights activism began when she moved to New York and joined the Harlem Writers Guild. 

This was where she met other artists involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Shortly before Malcolm X’s assassination she had hoped to help build his new organisation that he had planned to grow. 

However, Maya still persisted with the civil rights movement as she worked with Dr Martin Luther King Jr on civil rights issues before he too was assassinated.

She went from being a singer, a restaurant cook and struggling to take care of her son to publishing seven autobiographies and over 50 poems, books and short stories. She has also been the recipient of many illustrious awards. 

Maya Angelou's life is not one to be mourned but rather celebrated. She shared her light, love and passion with the world. And her work has been influential in the lives of many. 

In celebrating her life we have chosen our favourite poem written by a woman who epitomized strength, intellect and beauty. 

Phenomenal woman 
         
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman

Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me. 

- Maya Angelou

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