Guest MINDSETTER™ Leah Williams Metts: On Maya Angelou
Sunday, June 01, 2014
Rising
Her words were so thick and lush; I felt I could wrap myself in them.
She cast a shadow so long and tall, that I could walk for miles in her shade.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTLarger... than life, yet she seemed as familiar and present to me as a grandmother
Spinning yarns of 'mother wit' as she called it.
It's hard to feel sadness with the passing of Maya Angelou.
I can't imagine a more complete and perfectly lived life.
She bestowed every drop of herself to the World,
Unwinding pieces of herself until only spirit remained.
Like Plato, she invited us to look beyond the shelter of the cave,
and find our own rock to perch on.
"Come, you may stand upon my back and face your distant destiny,"
Each phrase dripped smoothly out of her mouth, offering no choice but to believe.
Now, she rises..
As if she could find a higher precipice than she did in life.
Her infectious laughter... her lavish smile...
…the stunning baritone that disarmed and captured me when she spoke.
These corporeal devices that she wielded so skillfully,
May no longer be the tools of her trade.
Her last words may have been written,
Her final words of wisdom spoken.
Yet I will ever forget how she made me feel.
So although she has risen,
She is, as she ever was…
here with me.
Leah Williams Metts is the NAACP Providence Youth Council Chairwoman, and is active in the community with the OIC and supporting political and family issues.
