Maya Angelou's Elegy For Michael Jackson

Among the many notable moments at Michael Jackson's funeral was Queen Latifah's reading of the Maya Angelou poem "We Had Him." The popular poetess wrote the poem specifically for the occasion (no easy task) and just that morning asked Latifah to perform it, which she did with spirit and elegance.

"We Had Him" is typical of Angelou's work: inspirational and accessible, confident, and deriving power from its rhythms and repetition. You probably know her popular poem "Phenomenal Woman," and might remember another occasional poem she wrote, "On the Pulse of the Morning," which she read at Bill Clinton's first inauguration.

Here's a transcript of "We Had Him" (I took a best guess at the line breaks--Angelou may have intended them to fall elsewhere):

Beloveds, now we know that we know nothing,
now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips
like a puff of summer wind.

Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace.
Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon.
In the instant that Michael is gone, we know nothing. No clocks can tell time.
No oceans can rush our tides with the abrupt absence of our treasure.

Though we are many, each of us is achingly alone, piercingly alone.
Only when we confess our confusion can we remember
that he was a gift to us and we did have him.

He came to us from the creator, trailing creativity in abundance.
Despite the anguish, his life was sheathed in mother love, family love,
and survived and did more than that.
He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style.
We had him whether we know who he was or did not know,
he was ours and we were his.
We had him, beautiful, delighting our eyes.

His hat, aslant over his brow, and took a pose on his toes for all of us.
And we laughed and stomped our feet for him.
We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing.
He gave us all he had been given.

Today in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana's Black Star Square.
In Johannesburg and Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama, and Birmingham, England

We are missing Michael.
But we do know we had him, and we are the world.

The audience responded well to the poem. What do you think?

I find more poignancy in this quote from her book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings: "A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song."

Michael didn't seem to have a lot of answers, but for all of his faults, he sang a powerful song.

Comments

[mmgbizgirl]

Dr. Angelou's poem was eloquent and said everything we were feeling. She is passing the torch to the next generation of women. I wish all wise women were like her.

I had an experience with a similarly famous Pulitzer Prize winning author that left me with the impression that some of our most notable women are not good at truly reaching out or passing the torch and exist in a bubble.

Maya doesn't roll like that. I love it.

[robjh1]

The opening line said it all!

[Liz Isaacs]

More of Dr. Angelou's eloquently brilliant prose in celebration of Michael Jackson's life.

I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Angelou speak on the "Art as Politics" & "Politics as Art" in March 2009 at Indiana University for their Arts Week celebration. Here are two of her published poems she shared with us, her much held captive audience:

http://www.iuauditorium.com/aud09/Pages.aspx?PageID=91

[StillAmused]

Angelou managed to say it all, and Latifah's reading was flawless.

Drives some people nuts, doesn't it?

[Nanaama]

You said it.

[OswegoKayaker]

"How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!" -- Maya Angelou

[Bigjonsey]

I love Maya Angelou. She is brilliant!

[brooklyncitizen]

Maya Angelou has many gifts but her poetry is not my favorite. This captures the idea of MJ and the grief at his passing well enough but it is not "light" enough.

MA is an amazing speaker...and funny as all get out.She spoke at my church a couple of times to a sold out crowd...she is unbelievably inspiring.

[rationalthought1]

Angelou is a "pop" poet so I guess its only fitting she write a poem for M.J.
Didn't think much of the poem - I think she's an institution, but highly overrated. The impressive dedication to me was Stevie Wonder's mesmerising performance of his genius music. Now Wonder is a genius - not overrated at all.

[lovbug]

i disagree with your analysis. Maya Angelou is a legend and one of the best poets that have ever lived.

[vandegrasse]

You haven't read much poetry, have you?

[GrainOSand]

HuffPost's Pick

I
""A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song."

The difference between immersion in one's nature and perversion of one's nature through a self-awareness that -- labels one's natural gifts; that -- seeks to trumpet one's natural gifts; that -- presumes to define the natural as a gift, rather than -- expression of “What Is”; this is the song of the bird -- versus a desire to have one's praises sung because one covets or seeks to know possess and be the answer.

No pat on the head required, just the sheer love of living, loving, being, singing, dancing, dying, crying, smiling, smelling flowers, and seeing sunsets...hearing laughter, witnessing triumph, realizing defeat, achieving success, and transcending failure. These are studies in becoming the all inclusive, highly elusive, self-contained and self sufficient peaceful and loving unit of life, conducive to diving deep into the darkest depths, or soaring to the stratospheric heights. No need to alter the imperfect for it is perfect in its expression of imperfection. Flawed -- who is not without flaw? Who knows all for sure? Accomplished -- is that what drives, is that reason to toil...to gain the label of...accomplished? If after living -- is being accomplished all one can note...I knew the answer but yet had no answer for the cancer that made me greedy, caused me to overlook and step over the needy, and informed malicious and vicious thoughts, my unaccomplished yoke?

[mmgbizgirl]

Gorgeous.

[Furby]

So beautifully put. Thanks.

[GrainOSand]

HuffPost's Pick

II
Was it simply love of the game, the same old thang that it has always been, amongst women...amongst men? Is life an expectation of a receipt, a tally sheet that you get at the end to reflect whether you lose or win? ...or is life the moments that exist and the thoughts actions and feelings witnessed, imagined, taken, and felt within...

Bird droppings come to statues erected in the park, the spirit of love that was Michael Jackson keeps you singing in the rain and dancing celebratory in the dark that is the passing of the flesh. Love continues to pass the test of haters, of time...of all manner of dirt and grime. Love emerges in each moment new and fresh. Ready to lead, yes indeed...love is the absolute best.

“Keep on with the force -- don’t stop -- don’t stop till you get enough.”

Ahhhh -- wise words to live by!

Mike was pure creativity in human form and he both gained and paid for that circumstance of nature. Free -- that is what he be now. Excuse the Ebonics but the essence of love transcends words and culture someway...somehow.

[TwoSpirits]

That was beautiful GrainOSand. Thank you.

[urweatherman]

Haven't followed the stories, didn't watch the funeral or hear any eulogies. Just wish as many people would pay respects to the creator on Sunday and everyday as they did to this man's life and death....

[BlackYowe]

AMEN!

[RedGinger]

Yeah, BlackYowe & weatherman, you would be the first ones to call MJ a freak, so why are you here on an Eulogy for MJ??

[LS1958]

Wow. The Christians are at it again.

Way to share the love of Jesus, y'all. Makes me want to go out and just drive on past every church I see.

Geeze.

[RedGinger]

You haven't watched the stories, didn't watch the funeral or hear any eulogies....but you thought you'd just come in here & inject the jesus juice? I'm not buying it.

[brooklyncitizen]

Isn't he part of the creation? where does the gift come from?

[OswegoKayaker]

He used all the gifts he was given and gave them back with every song he sang, every bead of sweat he poured and every dance that made us smile. What more can be asked or said of someone. To sit in a pew and passively listen to someone tell you when to pray and when to say amen is giving up one of the major parts of being human -- being creative -- the part of us that makes us godlike and unable to offer up the greatest gift of all -- the gift of the original. MJ was an original. If the gods hadn't wanted us to all be artists we wouldn't have been given all the gifts we have. It is just that some people have the imagination to use them and some people sit in pews waiting to be told what is proper and correct. Wait to be told it is okay to paint a sunset with a song.

[wndrwrthg]

When the creator does something like "Thiller", then I may consider it.

[OswegoKayaker]

Paying homage to God's creatures be it a human or bird in flight is respecting creation -- if you think you need a building or a man in a pulpit to tell you how to respect your creator -- you are already lost.

[bbjenae]

I think the audience responded well to the poem, it was a funeral how else were they supposed to respond to it. I thought that it was very interesting when Queen Latifah was reading the poem and relayed it with such grace, it was like Maya Angelou was there. Dr.Angelou, had many details in the poem about Michael Jackson's life it was amazing how she expressed his experiences in the form of a poem.

[nkadzi]

Eulogy was perfect for MJ; it summed up the gift God gave us in him!! thanks for writing this.

[MaxBet]

Walt Whitman could have done better.

Now that I think about it, Poe would be more suitable.

[Archivist1000]

Hmmmm well, hate to tell ya this, Max but .... Whitman and Poe are dead.

[MaxBet]

WHAT????

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over my fresh new copy of Thriller bought at the corner store,
While I nodded, nearly rapping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently beat box rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
"'Tis some visitor," I muttered, "Maybe Quincy Jones at my chamber door —
Only this, and nothing more."

See I did better myself!

[DBtv]

MaxFail

[MaxBet]

Ouch! Struck down while flying so high.lol

[bascombe]

you can see the video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIOq0yW-97g