We Had Him by Maya Angelou
We Had Him is a poem composed by Maya Angelou.
We Had Him
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 windWithout notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace
Sing our songs among the stars and and walk our dances across the face of the moonIn the instant we learn that Michael is gone we know nothing
No clocks can tell our time and no oceans can rush our tides
With the abrupt absence of our treasureThough we our 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 himHe came to us from the Creator, trailing creativity in abundance
Despite the anguish of life he was sheathed in mother love and family love and survived and did more than thatHe thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style
We had him
Whether we knew who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his
We had himBeautiful, delighting our eyes
He raked his hat slant over his brow and took a pose on his toes for all of us and we laughed and stomped our feet for himWe were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing
He gave us all he had been givenToday in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana’s Blackstar Square, in Johannesburg, in Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama and Birmingham England, we are missing Michael JacksonBut we do know that we had him
And we are the world.
Now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips like a puff of summer windWithout notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace
Sing our songs among the stars and and walk our dances across the face of the moonIn the instant we learn that Michael is gone we know nothing
No clocks can tell our time and no oceans can rush our tides
With the abrupt absence of our treasureThough we our 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 himHe came to us from the Creator, trailing creativity in abundance
Despite the anguish of life he was sheathed in mother love and family love and survived and did more than thatHe thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style
We had him
Whether we knew who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his
We had himBeautiful, delighting our eyes
He raked his hat slant over his brow and took a pose on his toes for all of us and we laughed and stomped our feet for himWe were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing
He gave us all he had been givenToday in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana’s Blackstar Square, in Johannesburg, in Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama and Birmingham England, we are missing Michael JacksonBut we do know that we had him
And we are the world.