THE FAMOUS WORKS AND QUOTES OF MARY ANGELOU

Prolific American author, poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou has died at 86.

She was known for her inspiring words that shed light onto the beauty and injustices of the world. USA TODAY Network lists 13 of her best quotes:

1. "I believe that each of us comes from the creator trailing wisps of glory."

- Interview with the Academy of Achievement (1990)

2. "I am a Woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal Woman,
that's me."

- Phenomenal Woman, poem (1978)

OBITUARY: Maya Angelou, honored poet and essayist, dies at 86

3. "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

- Interview for Beautifully Said Magazine (2012)

4. "You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them."

- Excerpted from Letter to My Daughter, a book of essays (2009)

Author and poet Maya Angelou is photographed at home on April 4, 2008, in New York. She died May 28 at the age of 86.  (Photo: Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY)

Fullscreen

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Next Slide

5. "My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."

- Angelou's Facebook (2011)

6. "The need for change bulldozed a road down the center of my mind."

- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969)

MORE: Maya Angelou's last tweet says it all

7. "Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud."

- Letter to My Daughter, a book of essays (2009)

8. "I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back."

- Interview with Oprah for Angelou's 70th birthday (2000)

9. "We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated."

- The Art of Fiction No. 119, the Paris Review

POETRY: Essential reading list

10. "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 from the April 2011 edition of O, the Oprah Magazine (2011)

11. "One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest."

- Interview in USA TODAY (March 5, 1988)

12. "Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope."

- Angelou's Facebook (Jan. 11, 2013)

13. "Nothing can dim the light which shines from within."

- Date unknown