Still I Rise

You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.

- from Maya Angelou's poem, Still I Rise
(listen to her read it here)


The soundtrack: Bruce Springsteen, The Rising. The original video.  Also: a live version, London 2013.