by Maya Angelou
White Here before You.
They are among the best we have
And You are all we have.
Heal, we pray.
Heal, we pray.
Heal us all,
We pray.
PRAYER
Father Mother God, thank You for Your
presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have You to lean upon.
Thank You for Your presence during the
bright and sunny days, for then we can
share that which we have with those who
have less.
And thank You for Your presence during the
Holy Days, for then we are able to
celebrate You and our families and our
friends.
For those who have no voice, we ask You
to speak.
For those who feel unworthy, we ask You
to pour Your love out in waterfalls of
tenderness.
For those who live in pain, we ask You to
bathe them in the river of Your healing.
For those who are lonely, we ask You to keep
them company.
For those who are depressed, we ask You to
shower upon them the light of hope.
Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of
substance, we ask You to give to all the
world that which we need most—Peace.
Amen.
DEDICATED TO
Brandon Bailey
Johnson Caylin Nicole Johnson
Elliott Jones
Lydia Stuckey
Also by
MAYA ANGELOU
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Gather Together in My Name
Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas
The Heart of a Woman
All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes
A Song Flung Up to Heaven
ESSAYS
Wouldn’t Take Nothing for My Journey Now
Even the Stars Look Lonesome
POETRY
Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’Fore I Diiie
Oh Pray My Wings are Gonna Fit Me Well
And Still I Rise
Shaker, Why Don’t You Sing?
I Shall Not Be Moved
On the Pulse of Morning
Phenomenal Woman
The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou
A Brave and Startling Truth
Amazing Peace
Mother
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
My Painted House,
My Friendly Chicken, and Me
Kofi and His Magic
PICTURE BOOKS
Now Sheba Sings the Song
Life Doesn’t Frighten Me
COOKBOOK
Hallelujah! The Welcome Table
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Poet, writer, performer, teacher, and director Maya Angelou was raised in Stamps, Arkansas, and then went to San Francisco. In addition to her bestselling autobiographies, beginning with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she has also written a cookbook, Hallelujah! The Welcome Table, and five poetry collections, including I Shall Not Be Moved and Shaker, Why Don’t You Sing? as well as the celebrated poem “On the Pulse of Morning,” which she read at the inauguration of President William Jefferson Clinton, and “A Brave and Startling Truth,” written at the request of the United Nations and read at its fiftieth anniversary. “Amazing Peace” was read at the lighting of the National Christmas Tree in Washington, D.C., in December 2005, while “Mother” was written especially for Mother’s Day, May 2006.
