Phenomenal Woman

When I was a tween I won my first pageant. (Pause for reaction). Yes, I did a few pageants in my youth, the last when I was 15 years old. I won a few, too. Whenever I was in pageants that had a talent component I usually recited a poem. I was too shy and nervous to do anything else. Eventually, Maya Angelou's "And Still I Rise..." became my poem. I connected with that poem at a young age. I understood what it meant. That poem made me a Maya Angelou fan. 

As a Maya Angelou fan, I never truly appreciated "Phenomenal Woman" until now. This is truly a woman's poem. And it wasn't until I became a woman--someone who has survived heartache and disappointment--that I understood what Maya was really saying. 

This is a poem about confidence in spite of...well...everything. As the poem states: "I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size." Despite the things she's not, she has confidence---she's phenomenal. She's a woman. As a girl, I think I intellectually understood what Maya was saying but now I get it. Truly. As someone who spends a lot of time doubting and dwelling on her deficiencies, it's time to make "Phenomenal Woman" my poem!

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 for my care.   
’Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.