Tag Archives: Maya Angelou

When Great Trees Fall

When great trees fall,
rocks on distant hills shudder,
lions hunker down
in tall grasses,
and even elephants
lumber after safety.When great trees fall
in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded beyond fear.When great souls die,
the air around us becomes
light, rare, sterile.
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly,
see with
a hurtful clarity.
Our memory, suddenly sharpened,
examines,
gnaws on kind words
unsaid,
promised walks
never taken.Great souls die and
our reality, bound to
them, takes leave of us.
Our souls,
dependent upon their
nurture,
now shrink, wizened.
Our minds, formed
and informed by their
radiance,
fall away.
We are not so much maddened
as reduced to the unutterable ignorance
of dark, cold
caves.

And when great souls die,
after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always
irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration.
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us.
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.

-Maya Angelo

“And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those that are friends.”

-Richard Bach

“What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly.”

-Richard Bach

“Death is the beginning of the soul’s new journey”

-Sri Chinmoy

Dedicated to Reza and Arlisa…

“How are you going to choose to spend this moment …this breath? It’s all there is. How much can you love? How will you choose to live today?
Let us drop the the bullshit, let go of the stories of who you think you are, the voices that keep you small and the misbelief that you are anything less than the absolute totality of LOVE. Claim your moment…NOW. It is really all there is…right here right now”

-Arlisa Houston

“How our world has changed.

Apart but still together. Incredible.”

-Reza Darmono

Today I Rise

“Where are you

little girl with broken wings but full of hope?

Where are you

wise woman covered in wounds?

Where are you?  Where are you?  Where are you?

Today is the day I will not sit still and give in anymore,

today I rise.

I am bruised but I will get up and walk again,

today I rise.

I don’t care if you ignore my beauty,

today I rise.

Through the alchemy of my darkest night, I heal and thrive,

today I rise.

I move through the world with confidence and grace.

I open my eyes and am ready to face

my wholeness as a woman and my limitless capacities.

I will walk my path

with audacity,

today I rise.

I reconnect with the many aspects of myself.

I am in awe of the reality I can create.

I am a queen,

I am a healer, a wise woman, a wild woman.

I will rise and be.

I am a rebel I will wake up and fight.

I am a mother and I am a child.

I will no longer disguise my sadness and pain,

I will no longer suffer and complain.

I am black and I am white.

There’s no reason to hurt.

Where are you? Where are you?

I call upon Kali to kiss me to life.

I transform my power and anger,

no more heartache or strife.

The world is missing what I am ready to give,

my wisdom, my sweetness, my love

and my hunger for peace.

I weep with the trees and the rivers

and the earth in distress.

I rise and shine and am ready to go on my quest.

Today I rise without doubt or hesitation,

today I rise without excuses, without procrastination.

Today I call upon my sisters to join

a movement of resoluteness and concern.

Today is my call into action,

to fulfill my mission without further distraction.

Today is the day,

today I will start,

to offer the world the wisdom of my heart”

This beautiful short poem of a film  (by Films for Action; filmsforaction.org) and the accompanying words were perfect music for the celebration of my birth day…..

http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/today-i-rise/

And then of course, Maya Angelou’s “And Still I Rise” is immediately

brought to mind…

Sunrise, Snow, Treeview

 

 

What People Don’t Forget

Maya2

“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.”

-Maya Angelou

Bryce, First Sun RaysMaya Angelou will live on.  Her passion, poetry, and powerful resonate voice are deeply instilled.  Such depth there, hard won, and strength. I am deeply grateful for the many gifts she brought to the world.

Still I Rise! Maya!

*click on the link below to hear Maya read her “Still I Rise”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&list=RD7HiE4lt_DUY&v=7HiE4lt_DUY

“Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take our breath away.”

-Maya Angelou

Bird, Maya Angelou

“Life is pure adventure and the sooner we realize that, the quicker we will be able to treat life
as art.”

-Maya AngelouStalks