In a vague attempt to get my brain into some kind of ‘writing mode’ I’m going to try and start each day with a post here… Thesis is coming along nicely – one chapter down, one nearly there, one well under way – but writing is proving difficult. As per usual, I’m lacking a regime and, now that term is over, I really have no excuse. SO. This is the plan. Each morning, I will write something whilst I eat breakfast. I will endeavour not to drop crumbs in the keyboard. Sometimes I might manage to write something interesting. Today, I will simply post a poem by Maya Angelou:
Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them
They think I’m telling lies
I say
It’s in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips
The stride of my steps
The curl of my lips
I’m a woman
Phenomenally
Phenomenal woman
That’s me
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please
And to a man
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees
Then they swarm around me
A hive of honey bees
I say
It’s the fire in my eyes
And the flash of my teeth
The swing of my waist
And the joy in my feet
I’m a woman
Phenomenally
Phenomenal woman
That’s me
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery
When I try to show them
They say they still can’t see
I say
It’s in the arch of my back
The sun of my smile
The ride of my breasts
The grace of my style
I’m a woman
Phenomenally
Phenomenal woman
That’s me
Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud
I say
It’s in the click of my heels
The bend of my hair
The palm of my hand
The need for my care
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally
Phenomenal woman
That’s me
Good stuff…
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