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Gwendolyn Brooks and Me by Ivy J.P. Yoder Imagine Not Knowing If Your Mom and Dad Would Make It Home Safel

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Gwendolyn Brooks and Me by Ivy J.P. Yoder Imagine Not Knowing If Your Mom and Dad Would Make It Home Safel Gwendolyn Brooks and Me By Ivy J.P. Yoder Imagine not knowing if your Mom and Dad would make it home safely from work. Imagine attending a school that was segregated. Imagine living in a culture that laughed at and made fun of your dreams – just because of your skin color. This was the reality for Gwendolyn Brooks, an African‐ American girl born in Kansas who began writing poetry in 1924 at age seven. Ms. Brooks certainly had talent. Her mother saw it right away, telling her daughter, “You’re going to be the lady Paul Laurence Dunbar!” By the time Ms. Brooks was eleven her poetry had been published in a local Chicago newspaper. Two years later one of her poems appeared in a children’s magazine, and by sixteen she had published 75 poems. Despite the challenges of growing up in segregated Chicago, Ms. Brooks found encouragement from her community. In fact, she even received words of encouragement from Langston Hughes, who she met at her family’s church after a poetry recital he gave. Working hard and supported by her parents (a janitor and a school teacher), Ms. Brooks published her first complete book of poetry in 1945 at age twenty‐eight. Five years later her second book won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. She was the first African American to win a Pulitzer. In 1962, Ms. Brooks was invited by President John F. Kennedy to read her poetry at a Library of Congress poetry festival. After that she was invited to teach at many colleges and universities. Gwendolyn Brooks passed away in 2000. She had worked hard throughout her life publishing many books of poetry and winning many awards, including the Robert Frost Medal and the National Medal of Arts. She was also inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Ms. Brooks’ made the world a better place by opening the world’s eyes with her written words on behalf of African Americans and women. Her words gave voice to hard‐working people who struggled against racism and other injustices. Like a giant oak that drops acorns that give rise to saplings, her passion emerged and provided nourishment for many that would come along later. Despite our many differences, I selected Gwendolyn Brooks to write about because I connected with her story. She began writing when she was young and she had big dreams for how she could inspire and empower people with her poems, such as this one (my favorite): Sadie and Maud Maud went to college. Sadie stayed home. Sadie scraped life With a fine toothed comb. She didn't leave a tangle in Her comb found every strand. Sadie was one of the livingest chicks In all the land. Sadie bore two babies Under her maiden name. Maud and Ma and Papa Nearly died of shame. When Sadie said her last so‐long Her girls struck out from home. (Sadie left as heritage Her fine‐toothed comb.) Maud, who went to college, Is a thin brown mouse. She is living all alone In this old house. To me, this poem says that if your life gives you hardship, don’t let that stop you from living life to its fullest. And if your life gives you advantages, don’t play it safe. Have courage to make the most out of your situation in life. I am a writer, and I too want to inspire people with my pen. My dream is to write about the lives of people around me who feel like no one listens or cares about them. I will continue the work of spreading Gwendolyn Brooks’s message of hope and empowerment. .
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