I am not competing with anyone other than myself. I want to be excellent at whatever I do.
Maya AngelouSelf-pity in its early stage is as snug as a feather mattress. Only when it hardens does it become uncomfortable.
Maya AngelouPeople don't always remember what you say or even what you do, but they always remember how you make them feel.
Maya AngelouOh, Black known and unknown poets, how often have your auctioned pains sustained us? Who will compute the lonely nights made less lonely by your songs, or by the empty pots made less tragic by your tales? If we were a people much given to revealing secrets, we might raise monuments and sacrifice to the memories of our poets, but slavery cured us of that weakness.
Maya Angelou