I was pirouette and flourish, I was filigree and flame. How could I count my blessings when I didn't know their names?
Rita DoveBeing Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is a more public utterance I can make as a poet.
Rita DoveIf our children are unable to voice what they mean, no one will know how they feel. If they canโt imagine a different world, they are stumbling through a darkness made all the more sinister by its lack of reference points. For a young person growing up in Americaโs alienated neighborhoods, there can be no greater empowerment than to dare to speak from the heart โ and then to discover that one is not alone in ones feelings.
Rita Dove