
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion
model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
A LITTLE ABOUT THE PHENOMENAL WOMAN
by Kambe R.
Maya Angelou was born in Saint Louis,
Missouri. When she was young she was raped by
her mother's boyfriend and was mute five
years.
Maya Angelou spent her
formative years shuttling between St.Louis,
Arkansas, and San Francisco where she
realized her goal of becoming that cities
first Negro streetcar conductor.
In
the 1950's, Maya Angelou studied dancing with
Pearl Primus in New York, and later she
appeared as a nightclub singer in New York
and San Francisco. She worked as an editor
for The Arab Observer, an English-language
weekly published in Cairo. Maya Angelou lived
in Accra, Ghana,where under the black
nationalist regime of Karane Nkrumah she
taught music, drama ,and studied
cinematography in Sweden.
Maya Angelou's first achievement was, when
she became a celebrity in 1970 with the
publication of "I know why the caged bird
sings."It was the first volume of her
autobiography,which was about her encounters
with southern racism and rape by her mother's
lover. I know why the caged bird sings,was
also made into a television movie in
1979.
Maya Angelou's second achievement was in 1971
when she produced "just give me a cool drink
of water 'fore I die (poetry)",in 1975 Oh
pray my wings are going to fit me well
(poetry), in 1979 And still I rise (poetry),
and in 1983 Shaker why don't you sing?
(poetry). She was nominated in 1977 for an
Emmy award adaption of the best selling
Roots.