And Still I Rise

Your sweet strong face meets me in my dreams

There is wisdom in your words and understanding in your soul

A Sister, an Auntie, a Grandmother – all three reside in you as we visit in the dreamtime

You have touched me and graced my life with your presence

Though I never met you, shook your hand, nor had a personal encounter with you

Your words have sang to and soothed my spirit

You taught me that “life is a bitch and I must go out and kick ass”

I learned from you that I am a Phenomenally Phenomenal Woman

Being a woman I grace the life I live and those who touch my life are enriched

By my presence, my grace, my being a woman in a world

That has not valued or respected women for the gentle strength and graceful courage

We each hold at the very core, the center of our being

A gift so bright and pure it is often not seen because it outshines all other gifts

Present in ourselves, our communities, cultures, our world…

Yet we not only survive – we thrive –

Because of your light having lit the way of our paths

We are stronger, brighter, more vibrant, kinder, and gentler for the grace of you

As a woman, a mother, a wife, a friend, and lover I thank you Maya Angelou

For having graced our world for the short eighty-six years of your life

And like you, and because of you still I rise…again and again

I, as all those you have touched, remain as living tributes to your life

And have the courage to love one more time; always one more time

PSG

5/31/14