“Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that’s me.”

Maya Angelou is considered one of the best African-American poets.  Her excellence had made her an icon and a role model.  Maya Angelou’s work covers a variety of topics, which includes the fight for civil rights, gender equality, and racism.  Even after her death, Angelou’s voice and thoughts are still serving as an inspiration. In times when women are still denigrated they should be remembered how phenomenal they are. 

One of the most popular and influential poems of her authorship is titled “Phenomenal Woman”.  Throughout this poem, she is trying to teach a lesson to society and women their selves.  Women are much more than body! Women’s beauty is composed by a mixture of aspects, each one unique, and each one a mystery! The lines of this poem are suggesting that the beauty of a woman depends more on how they feel about themselves.

In this poem, Angelou is communicating with us using a convincing, assertive and self-confident tone.  The poem shows how she has overcome many obstacles thanks to her self-esteem.  She also proposes that you get stronger with confidence.  This strength can serve to fight against stereotypes and other society problems.  By the development of the poem, the reader starts to feel her power and enchantment.  At the end, you feel that you have what it takes to face life and all its prejudices. 

The author uses many elements of poetry to develop her main purpose.  Imagery plays an important role in this particular poem.  The imagery on this poem helps us to visualize a strong, confident woman.  The author really wants to emphasize her purpose by repeating multiple times the lines: “Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that’s me.”  The line length used in this poem also helps to emphasize her message.  However, it does not have a specific rhyme scheme.

 “Phenomenal woman” by Maya Angelou is a literary work that recalls for women rights (feminism) but also for self-confidence.  She also stands out the importance of beauty on the inside.  Angelou clearly states that her inner beauty and confidence makes her a sensual and attractive woman.  The personality and intelligence of women gives them power and control.  In times of crisis, we need all women to know how important they are to society.  Phenomenally! Phenomenal women!  Brilliant women! That is what we need.

The strange father of Sue

Sir,

Let me express my displeasure by regarding your irresponsibility. It seems that your family is comprised of multiple bottles filled with ethanol.  Were you under the influence of your liquid family when you decided to name your son? You decided to leave when your boy was three years old, leaving only a bottle and a guitar. Dear friend, it seems you never matured.

You left your family alone.  You destined your son to grow hatred because of the absence of his father and still you named him Sue. Do you have other kids? Oh let me think! You have a daughter name George! What’s with the name? Do you have a conscience? You never thought you could someday look at your son's eyes? How does it feel to have a son that wants to kill you?

Let me tell you, even though I think there are other ways to deal with miserable parents like you, I felt emotion when he found you at that bar.  I enjoyed when he left you without multiple teethes.  But still, knowing that  he was your son, you cut his ear! At that moment you created a whole new level of bad parenting.  Congratulations, you won the worst dad award! Are you even human?  

You told him that the main reason you called him Sue was because you want him to grow strong.  Are you being serious?  There are other and better options my friend.  When you raise a son with values and with God in his heart, he becomes strong enough to live.  You lost the opportunity of watching him play, his first day of school, his smile, most importantly, you lost the opportunity to hear him say: daddy I love you.  Oh, what a sad life you have lived sir.  I think leaving your son was your biggest mistake. 

I hope you have the opportunity to actually get to know your son.  I hope you are ready to leave the bars, to leave your ethanol girlfriend and start a new life trying to be sober.  There are many beautiful things in life, and you have wasted already too many years.  I hope your son’s ear is better and please do not suggest to anyone to name their sons Sue.

Hope you are still missing your teeth,

Jorge Chéverez Ocasio

To the great Maya Angelou

Today I speak from all of the minorities groups.

How great you were, how great you are! You left Earth recently to take a new path, a new journey.  But here the struggle continues, and the only difference lies in your physical absence. Today, your people need you more than ever and perhaps they feel that they have lost a great fighter, a phenomenal woman. Nonetheless, you left us a part of you in each letter, word, paragraph and poem of your authorship. Your writings, your speeches, all of them reiterated our willpower in favor of equality but against the unfair.

Even if there is hate, you taught us that we must continue to rise. If we want to rise we need to face adversity with courage. Oh Maya Angelou, you showed us that slander is destroyed with truth and knowledge! Why do I have to be ashamed of who I am? Why it is hard to accept that we are also beautiful and important to the nation? Why they cannot accept us as equals?

Enough of being repressed, I do not want any more abuse! I am as important as you, I am part of patriotism and of the definition of this nation. My feelings, culture, roots, music, everything about me are complemented with your attributes. That makes America unique!

So, what is the problem if we grow? Why do you insist on keeping us a level below yours? You know what? You can do everything you want, and still we will continue to rise. We will continue contributing to our country. I will live and fight for a future where my kids and yours enjoy the same rights.  A country free of discrimination, a country where white, blacks, “mulatos”, and the entire minority groups love and respect each other as the specie that we are.

You left a huge legacy.  You taught us to fight for progress, for equality. No matter the circumstances, or how much we should sacrifice, we can never stop. We need to keep up rising to achieve our greatest dreams. We want a world in which we can express ourselves without fear.  I want a world where there is more love than prejudices. I will follow up; follow up until I get to where you are. From there, I hope to see our dreams come true. I want to see with you a sea that ceased to be black. I want to delight a clear dawn in which we are rising together.

Thank you for believing not only in you, but also in all of us,

Jorge Chéverez Ocasio

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"This to Shall Pass" by Helen Steiner Rice

If I can endure for this minute

Whatever is happening to me,

No matter how heavy my heart is

Or how dark the moment may be-

If I can remain calm and quiet

With all the world crashing about me,

Secure in the knowledge God loves me

When everyone else seems to doubt me-

If I can but keep on believing

What I know in my heart to be true,

That darkness will fade with the morning

And that this will pass away, too-

Then nothing in life can defeat me

For as long as this knowledge remains

I can suffer whatever is happening

For I know God will break all of the chains

That are binding me tight in the darkness

And trying to fill me with fear-

For there is no night without dawning

And I know that my morning is near.

………………………………………………………..

Language has an outstanding power.  It can transmit emotion and comfort by combining words. “This too shall pass”, a lyric poem by Helen Steiner Rice, is an extraordinary motivational and inspirational poem that does not have a specific or define rhyme scheme (ABCB ABBB DEDE BFDF). Through the use of some elements of poetry, she makes the reader recognize that despite of the pain or the difficulty of the situation (“No matter how heavy my heart is/Or how dark the moment may be”) we just need to have faith in God.  She uses the weight of the heart as a symbol for difficulty and sadness. The author also compares her pain with the sensation of the world crashing her (hyperbole).  Personification, another element of poetry, is also present in this poem. The author gives the chains the power of trying to fill her with fear.

 I can suffer whatever is happening

For I know God will break all of the chains

That are binding me tight in the darkness

And trying to fill me with fear

Helen Steiner has done a masterpiece with this poem.  Using an inspirational tone, the author has write every verse; every stanza, to lead us to imagine (imagery) the extent of her pain but also the gratitude and greatness of God's power.  It is God, and only God, who can give to us the strength to endure all of our problems.  God is always the answer. He is the key for eternal peace. 

           

                                          "For there is no night without dawning 

                                           And I know that my morning is near."

                                                          Helen Steiner Rice