Had I known that the heart breaks slowly, dismantling itself into unrecognizable plots of misery... had I known yet I would have loved you, your brash and insolent beauty, your heavy comedic face and knowledge of sweet delights, but from a distance I would have left you whole and wholly for the delectation of those who wanted more and cared less.
Maya AngelouI'm grateful to be of use. I will not be misused or abused, but I will be of use to anybody.
Maya AngelouWe are not just flesh and blood. And our hungers are not going to be set aside as just flesh and blood.
Maya AngelouIt is this belief in a power larger than myself and other than myself which allows me to venture into the unknown and even the unknowable.
Maya AngelouI will write on the pages of history what I want them to say. I will be myself. I will speak my own name.
Maya AngelouIn an unfamiliar culture, it is wise to offer no innovations, no suggestions, or lessons.
Maya AngelouOne of the problems we have as writers is we don't take ourselves seriously while writing; being serious is setting aside a time and saying if it comes, good; if it doesn't come, good, I'll just sit here.
Maya AngelouTo be human is to be challenged to be more divine. Not even to try to meet such a challenge is the biggest defeat imaginable.
Maya AngelouI made the decision to quit show business. Give up the skintight dresses and manicured smiles. The false concern over sentimental lyrics. I would never again work to make people smile inanely and would take on the responsibility of making them think.
Maya AngelouDon't let the incidents which take place in life bring you low. And certainly don't whine. You can be brought low, that's OK, but don't be reduced by them. Just say, 'That's life.'
Maya AngelouThough we are many, each of us is achingly alone, piercingly alone. Only when we confess our confusion can we remember that he was a gift to us and we did have him. He came to us from the creator, trailing creativity in abundance. Despite the anguish, his life was sheathed in mother love, family love, and survived and did more than that. He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style. We had him whether we know who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his.
Maya AngelouIt's so tedious writing cookbooks or writing the recipes because I've never been much of a measurer. But to write a book, you have to measure everything.
Maya AngelouI’ve got a magic charm That I keep up my sleeve, I can walk the ocean floor And never have to breathe.
Maya AngelouYou may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.
Maya AngelouOne isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.
Maya AngelouI think that that's the wisest thing - to prevent illness before we try to cure something.
Maya AngelouYou 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.
Maya AngelouWhen I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.
Maya AngelouI liked to write from the time I was about 12 or 13. I loved to read. And since I only spoke to my brother, I would write down my thoughts. And I think I wrote some of the worst poetry west of the Rockies. But by the time I was in my 20s, I found myself writing little essays and more poetry - writing at writing.
Maya AngelouEach time a dancer moves devoutly or a composer faithfully searches the silence for the veiled melodies, eternity is engaged.
Maya AngelouNumber of things happen after I was 50. One, you are hopefully secure in what you want to do - which means that you don't spend a lot of time chewing on your knuckles about your reason for being here.Also, you're at your most beautiful. No woman is ever more beautiful than she is at 50.
Maya AngelouI'm a descendant of someone bought and sold, and brought in 1619 in what was to become the United States.
Maya AngelouAll great artists draw from the same resource: the human heart, which tells us that we are all more alike than we are unalike.
Maya AngelouTragedy, no matter how sad, becomes boring to those not caught in its addictive caress.
Maya AngelouBitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. But anger is like fire. It burns it all clean.
Maya AngelouIndependence is a heady draught, and if you drink it in your youth, it can have the same effect on the brain as young wine does. It does not matter that its taste is not always appealing. It is addictive and with each drink you want more.
Maya AngelouIt is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.
Maya AngelouA Woman in harmony with her spirit is like a river flowing. She goes where she will without pretense and arrives at her destination prepared to be herself and only herself
Maya AngelouSomeone was hurt before you, wronged before you, hungry before you, frightened before you, beaten before you, humiliated before you, raped before you... yet, someone survived... You can do anything you choose to do.
Maya AngelouI think all poems are commissioned. They just come to me without somebody outside commissioning them. The idea comes and I will live with them 'til I get it as close to what I mean. I've never been totally satisfied. I've come close a few times.
Maya AngelouIn a world so rife with vulgarity, with brutality and violence, love exists. I’m grateful to know that it exists.
Maya AngelouFew, if any, survive their teens. Most surrender to the vague but murderous pressure of adult conformity.
Maya AngelouIf you're going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can't be erased.
Maya AngelouThe sisters and brothers that you meet give you the materials which your character uses to build itself. It is said that some people are born great, others achieve it, some have it thrust upon them. In truth, the ways in which your character is built have to do with all three of those. Those around you, those you choose, and those who choose you.
Maya AngelouLiving well is an art that can be developed: a love of life and ability to take great pleasure from small offerings and assurance that the world owes you nothing and that every gift is exactly that, a gift.
Maya Angelou