"You are the sum total of everything you've ever seen, heard, eaten, smelled, been told, forgot - it's all there. Everything influences each of us, and because of that I try to make sure that my experiences are positive."
- Interview with Maya Angelou from the April 2011 edition of O, the Oprah Magazine (2011)
Twitter and Facebook have been filled with reminiscences, tributes, quotes, pictures, and interviews of Maya Angelou since she passed away this week--much too soon. I was heartbroken to learn that my niece and I were not going to be able to hear her speak in Omaha in two weeks. I wanted Alexis to be able to hear the woman, the force of nature, that was Dr. Angelou.
Maya Angelou has been an inspiration and a mentor of sorts to me since I was sixteen. Even though I never had the opportunity to meet her, her words to a youth assembly in Dallas in 1991 have stayed with me. Hearing her speak about her early childhood, her rape, her decision to stop speaking, her love for books and knowledge, all created a spark in me that I've carried throughout the years. Even though I, a white girl from small town Nebraska, could never truly understand what a black woman from Stamps, Arkansas, had gone through, her words changed something in me.
Between Dr. Angelou's passion and an inspirational senior English teacher, I soon knew that I wanted to share those emotions with others. I need students to know that there is so much more than their little corner of Nebraska, that the world can only truly be understood through a wide variety of experiences, even if those experiences can only be read about. I hope in some small way I've done that by sharing my love of books, my own experiences, and my travels with my classes.
I know there is no possible way that I could ever accomplish all that the amazing Maya did in her lifetime. All I can hope is that maybe, in some small way, I can have an impact on others as she did on me.
