Quotes About Adversity

You saw me bludgeoned by circumstance. Lost, injured, hurt by chance. I screamed to the heavens....loudly screamed.... Trying to change our nightmares into dreams...

Frequently, I have been asked how I got to be this way. How did I, born black in a white country, poor in a society where wealth is adored and sought after at all costs, female in an environment where only large ships and some engines are described favourably by using the female pronoun-how did I get to be Maya Angelou?

The woman who survives intact and happy must be at once tender and tough. She must have convinced herself, that she, her values, and her choices are important. In a time and world where males hold sway and control, the pressure upon women to yield their rights-of-way is tremendous. And it is under those very circumstances that the woman's toughness must be in evidence.

Having courage does not mean that we are unafraid. Having courage and showing courage means we face our fears.

You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them. Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud. Do not complain. Make every effort to change things you do not like. If you cannot make a change, change the way you have been thinking. You might find a new solution.

It seemed terribly unfair to have a toothache and a headache and have to bear at the same time the heavy burden of Blackness.

You have tried to destroy me and though I perish daily, I shall not be moved.

Every storm runs out of rain.

Grief works its way on people differently. Some sulk, or become morose, or weep and scream a vengeance at the gods.

Comprendía la perversidad de la vida, la de que en la lucha estriba la alegría.

I am a builder Sometimes I have built well, but often I have built without researching the ground upon which I put my building I raised a beautiful house and I lived in it for a year Then it slowly drifted away with the tides for I had laid the foundation upon shifting sand

You may encounter many defeats. But you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats so you can know who you are, what you can rise from and how you can still come out of it.

You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated.

Depression, at least, did not discriminate.

You may kill me with your hatefulness, but like air I'll rise.

Shadows on the wall Noises down the hall Life doesn't frighten me at all Bad dogs barking loud Big ghosts in a cloud Life doesn't frighten me at all.

You may trode me in the very dirt. But still, like dust, I'll rise.

The Black child must learn early to allow laughter to fill his mouth or the million small cruelties he encounters will congeal and clog his throat.

I had a lot of clouds, but I have had so many rainbows.

Maya Angelou "I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights

Thus we lived through a major war. The questions in the ghettos was, can we make it through a minor peace?

We were on top again. As always, again. We survived. The depths had been icy and dark, but now a bright sun spoke to our souls. I was no longer simply a member of the proud graduating class of 1940; I was a proud member of the wonderful, beautiful Negro race.

He had never once looked at me. He turned his back and went through the door into the cool beyond. Momma backed up inside herself for a few minutes. I forgot everything except her face which was almost a new one to me. She leaned over and took the doorknob, and in her everyday soft voice she said, "Sister, go on downstairs. Wait for me. I'll be there directly.

You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them. Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud. Do not complain. Make every effort to change things you do not like. If you cannot make a change, change the way you have been thinking. You might find a new solution. Never