"...her secret is patience..." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Road Trip Wednesday: Sister I'm a Poet

Hello lovelies, 

     So I haven't done one of these in a while. I know, bad me. I've been very book review oriented on the blog lately, mostly because I've been trying to restart my MS and focus on that. But I actually do have a couple of writing blog posts planned for the near future, so make sure you come back for those. 
     Anyway, back to Road Trip Wednesday! 
     
     This Week's Topic: April is National Poetry Month! Share your favorite poem(s) or poet.

      This Week's Road Trip Song: Still Into You by Paramore


      
     This is actually a tough question for me because poetry is something that was part of my life for a while and now is a sporadic occurance. I've loved Robert Frost and his poems for ages, but I feel like that would be an easy answer. So I went deeper. Of course, I couldn't pick just one, so I'm sharing two with you. 

Still I Rise 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 moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes 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
Diggin' in my own back yard.

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's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a 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. 



I Loved You by Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin
I loved you, and I probably still do,
And for a while the feeling may remain...
But let my love no longer trouble you,
I do not wish to cause you any pain.
I loved you; and the hopelessness I knew,
The jealousy, the shyness - though in vain -
Made up a love so tender and so true
As may God grant you to be loved again.


(Translated by Genia Gurarie, 11/10/95) 
What about you? Any poems that stuck with you through the years?

Happy Wednesday,

Valia 


4 comments:

Chris Desson said...

You have great taste. I love Paramore. Their lyrics and music are profound and gut-wrenching in a really good way. And Maya Angelou is terrific and vastly emotional. I love her!!! :)

Anonymous said...

I love Maya Angelou's poem. She sounds feisty! Love it! :)

Unknown said...

Really enjoyed both those poems, especially the Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin one. Thanks for posting! (Paramore too - fab!)

Stephanie Allen said...

I love Maya Angelou, and that poem is one of my favorites. Excellent choice! :)

Flickr