Ruthie Foster | Becoming is Superior to Being

Ruthie Foster and Diunna Greenleaf, Heritage Place, Conroe, Texas (June 2, 2005) — Image by kenne

Texas blues singer, Ruthie Foster singing Maya Angelou’s poem,”Phenomenal Woman.”

Phenomenal Woman

BY MAYA ANGELOU

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them,
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing,
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need for my care.
’Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Ruthie Foster & Diunna Greenleaf at Heritage Park, Conroe, Texas, 2005 — Image by kenne

Here we are in Tucson listening to the Blues on TBlues, which only occasionally has some Texas Blues, when there was a sound we recognized as familar Texas Blues — Ruthie Foster singing “Stone Love” from her CD, “The Truth According to Ruthie Foster.” Cool, really cool!

kenne