𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚐𝚞𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝙰𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚎 𝙹𝚘𝚑𝚗𝚜𝚘𝚗

𝙰𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝙻𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚗!

Marguerite Annie Johnson is her name,
Born in St. Louis, 1928.
Recognized by her nickname
And the critically acclaimed ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’.
It's Maya Angelou's autobiography,
A history of a person's life written in all honesty.
And honestly, life was rough for her and Bailey,
That was her brother,
Both sent to live with their grandmother.
After their parents split up, Grandma held them down
Through the mix up, 
While they drown in a sea of grief.
That's a metaphor, using words figuratively,
But when they moved back, it got worse, 
Seriously.
Maya was abused and raped by her mother's boyfriend,
She told her brother who told the family about the torment.
He was later found dead
Beaten to death, 
Maya filled with fear.
She blamed herself and didn't speak again for five years.

Suffered as a child 
And dealt with abuse,
That did not determine who she was, 
That's just the ugly truth.
Took the story of her life and put it to good use,
Cause still she rise.
When she believed in the power of words,
She could overcome the pain by reversing the hurt.
Turn a loss to a gain, 
As she stuck to the plan,
Cause still she rise.

Maya had a teacher named Mrs. Flowers,
Who brought her books to read, and the knowledge she devoured.
Reading gave her courage to find her voice again
But obstacles remain time and time again.
On top of being poor, 
She dealt with racism,
Segregated schools caused frustration.
Raids by the KKK, with her back against the wall,
Maya had to take it day by day.
She became a single mom at 17,
And so she could support her son, became a working machine
A waitress, 
A singer, 
A dancer, 
An actress,
A cook, 
A civil rights activist.
But most recognized for her memoir, 
She was brilliant,
Creating powerful stories of resilience.
Her books and poems filled with figurative language,
Like similes, 
Metaphors, 
And imagery.

Maya died in 2014,
But her words live on through her legacy…