Sunday, April 24, 2011
African American Female Poet take 4--> Maya Angelou
*screaming Mayaaaaaaaaa*
Maya Who?
Maya Angelou!Nooo, Maya Who!?!?
FOOL SO YOU DONT KNOW MS. ANGELOU!!!!!!!?!
I would hate for anyone reading this to not know why the caged bird sings, and no its not because he's hungry!!! Dr. Maya Angelou is one of the most renowned and influential voices of our time. Hailed as a global renaissance woman, Dr. Angelou is a celebrated poet, memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and civil rights activistMen
When I was young, I used to
Watch behind the curtains
As men walked up and down the street. Wino men, old men.
Young men sharp as mustard.
See them. Men are always
Going somewhere.
They knew I was there. Fifteen
Years old and starving for them.
Under my window, they would pauses,
Their shoulders high like the
Breasts of a young girl,
Jacket tails slapping over
Those behinds,
Men.
One day they hold you in the
Palms of their hands, gentle, as if you
Were the last raw egg in the world. Then
They tighten up. Just a little. The
First squeeze is nice. A quick hug.
Soft into your defenselessness. A little
More. The hurt begins. Wrench out a
Smile that slides around the fear. When the
Air disappears,
Your mind pops, exploding fiercely, briefly,
Like the head of a kitchen match. Shattered.
It is your juice
That runs down their legs. Staining their shoes.
When the earth rights itself again,
And taste tries to return to the tongue,
Your body has slammed shut. Forever.
No keys exist.
Then the window draws full upon
Your mind. There, just beyond
The sway of curtains, men walk.
Knowing something.
Going someplace.
But this time, I will simply
Stand and watch.
Maybe.
African American Female Poets- Take 3!---> Ai
Florence Anthony legally changed her name to Ai, the Japanese word for "love".
CUTE, WOULDN'T YOU EXPECT A POET TO DO THIS.... MAYBE I'LL CHANGE MINES ONE DAY TOO, SOMETHING LIKE PEACE OR HAPPY RAIN. LOL HMMM
Ai was born in Albany, Texas but grew up in Tucson, Arizona. Her ancestry is part Japanese, Choctaw-Chickasaw, Black, Irish, Southern Cheyenne, and Comanche.----> KNOW YOUR WONDERING HOW DOES THIS MAKE HER A BLACK FEMALE POET?!
DISCLAIMER: THE ONE DROP RULE, WAS NOT COINED BY REVOLUTIONARYTHOUGHTS3000 ;-)
IF YOU ASK SMOKEY--- "If one drop of black blood makes you black like they say, then we’re all black anyway.” ~Smokey Robinson
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Ai is noted for her "bleak dramatic monologues which give voice to marginalized, often poor and abused speakers." (Poetry Foundation)
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