Thank you Maya Angelou xo
Life has been so busy lately between keeping up with life responsibilities, working on a cookbook with my girls and marketing for my book, Grow Yourself Beautiful, it’s left little time for writing my blog. However, I’m inspired to sit down and write for a bit to honor one of my greatest inspirations, Maya Angelou. She passed on this day back in 2014. I always want to help keep her memory alive for our newer generations to know her and also as a compass for me. She has greatly influenced my life both as a human being and a writer.
Maya Angelou was not only an inspirational poet, she was a perfect balance of a soft but strong woman. She was a beautiful writer about life and a powerful civil rights activist. What I love most was her authenticity, honesty and compassion. She had substance. She wrote about things that mattered. She was brilliant at putting life and feelings into words. I don’t believe anyone who sets out to be an “inspirational writer” can be truly authentic at it. I believe Inspirational writing has to come from people that think and feel deeply about themselves, others and life and then think it and feel it out loud onto paper. She was a master at that. I can always tell when someone is trying to be an inspiration rather than just authentically communicating thoughts and feelings that matter. As I keep growing as a writer and person, she will continue to be a compass. Maya wrote about things that inspire me to grow. I want to keep that in my heart. That’s my favorite way to write. I love writing about real things that inspire all of us to keep growing stronger and more beautiful for ourselves and each other. Thank you Maya for your beautiful words and gifts.
She truly had the best quotes and that’s how I will honor her today. These are my favorite and I feel them so deeply:
“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.”
“If you don’t like something, change it.“
“If you can’t change it, change your attitude.“
“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.“
“When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”
“Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible.“
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.“
“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.“
“You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lines. You may trod me in the very dirt, but still, like dust, I’ll rise.“
May 2021