Phenomenal Woman - cf gives me crazy hair

Yesterday, I double-checked what all I needed to submit for my portfolio, and of course, I missed or overlooked that I needed to submit ten poems that I liked and the reasons why I liked them. Oh lord. This was separate from the ten poems that I wrote. I think reading “ten” blurred in my mind.

I found ten and I typed, copied and pasted all over the damn place. The whole thing ended up being 50 pages. Thank goodness we were submitting online.

Still, the last couple of days I have been able to sit down and read. I am 200 pages in on this book – feels so good to read.

Here is one of my all-time favorite poems; you can listen to Maya Angelou recite it below as well. I could truly listen to her voice all day.

May your hearts be full all day.

Maya Angelou

Phenomenal Woman

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 step,

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 in 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.