Maya Angelou

I love the poetry of Maya Angelou. 

She was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4, 1928 and named Marguerite Annie Johnson.  She was an  author, poet, dancer, actress, and singer.   Over a period of five decades, she published seven autobiographies, three books of essays and several books of poetry.  She also wrote many plays, movies, and television shows during this period.  Maya was the recipient of countless  awards and a host of  honorary degrees.

In her first autobiography she recounts the story of  first seventeen years of life, published under the title  "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" (1969).   She was the second child of Bailey Johnson, a doorman  and Vivian (Baxter) Johnson who was a nurse. When she was three years old, her parents divorced and she and her brother were sent to live with their  grandmother, Annie Henderson, Stamps, Arkansas. 
When Maya was eight, she was back with her mother in St Louis.  It was here that she was raped by her mother's boyfriend, a man named Freeman. Maya told her brother, who in turn told the rest of their family. Freeman was found guilty, yet he was  in prison only for one day. However, four days later he was murdered.  It is suspected that her uncles might have been responsible for Freeman's murder. Following this incident, Maya, for a period of almost five years, never spoke again.  The reason she gave was, "I thought, my voice killed him; I killed that man, because I told his name. And then I thought I would never speak again, because my voice would kill anyone ..."

Here is one of Maya's well known poems.  I hope you enjoy it with me.

ALONE by Maya Angelou

Lying, thinking

Last night

How to find my soul a home

Where water is not thirsty

And bread loaf is not stone

I came up with one thing

And I don't believe I'm wrong

That nobody,

But nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.

There are some millionaires

With money they can't use

Their wives run round like banshees

Their children sing the blues

They've got expensive doctors

To cure their hearts of stone.

But nobody

No, nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Now if you listen closely

I'll tell you what I know

Storm clouds are gathering

The wind is gonna blow

The race of man is suffering

And I can hear the moan,

'Cause nobody,

But nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.