Maya Angelou grew up in the racist south and faced many obstacles that ordinary people could not overcome. She was able to use her troubles as inspiration to many wonderful works of poetry. In Maya Angelou's famous poem, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she is able to touch a personal note on many occasions in my life. I could relate the poem to every developmental stage in my life, but the part that serves as the greatest connection between Maya Angelou and me would be our childhood experiences. .
As a child Maya was abused by a father figure and shuffled around from house to house. She was a target of ridicule and harassment, and yet she persevered. She worked through her traumatic experiences overcame them with ultimate grace and dignity. In her poem, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya says "The free bird thinks of another breeze and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn and he names the sky his own." What I believe this means is that I should not give in to failure, even if people are waiting for me to make a mistake. I should think of each day as a new day and not dwell on the previous day. I should take and hold tight to each of the new days, because I deserve it. .
At the age of two, after a long night at a local bar, my father made his way home. With his red and swollen eyes, he stumbled in the trailer door and found my mother gathering up a few belongings, including me. Once she had all that she could carry, my mother strode across the living room towards the front door. Furiously, my father grabbed a gun and pointed it directly at us and made some horrible threats. I am not sure what exactly was said, but I know that my mother left and she later divorced my father. My biological father turned out to be an even greater disappointment from that moment on. It was now the sole responsibility of my mother to raise a child all be herself.