YouTube Channel: OWN
Dr. Maya Angelou was one of the finest poets and authors of our time. She recently passed away in May of 2014, though her powerful legacy is one that will eternally lived on. She was a voice for those constantly afflicted, whether because of the color of their skin or simply because they thought differently than the rest of us. Here are 13 quotes from the lovely poet who graced our lives while on this earth while her words will continue to grace our world even though she has gone.
1. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
2. “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
3. “I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a bitch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass.”
4. “A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”
5. “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.”
6. “History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.”
7. “We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”
8. “If you have only one smile in you give it to the people you love.”
9. “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”
10. “My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.”
11. “I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.”
12. “Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.”
13. “If you’re always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be.”
Check out some of Ms. Angelou’s most known works:
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
- The Complete Poetry
- Letter to My Daughter
- The Heart of a Woman
- Rainbow in the Cloud: The Wisdom and Spirit of Maya Angelou
Featured image via The Weekly Challenger
