Still,
I Rise
A meditative poem by Maya Angelou
You may write me down in history with your bitter,
Twisted lies
You may trod me in the very dirt,
But still,
Like dust,
I'll rise
Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
Cause I walk like I've got oil wells pumping in my living room
Just like the moons and like the suns,
With a certainty of tides
Just like the hope springing high,
Still,
I'll rise
Did you want to see me broken,
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries
Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don't you take it awful hard,
Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines digging in my own backyard
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still,
Like air,
I'll rise
Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise that I dance like I've got diamonds at the meeting of my thighs?
Out of the huts of history shame,
I rise
Up from the past that's rooted in pain,
I rise
I'm a black ocean leaping in wide
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear,
I rise
Into the daybreak that's wondrously clear,
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave
I am the dream and the hope of the slave,
I rise
I rise
I rise