Poet, author and activist Maya Angelou has died at the age of 86.
In a statement on Facebook, they said she passed away quietly at home in North Carolina at 08:00 EST (12:00 GMT).
“Her family is extremely grateful that her ascension was not belaboured by a loss of acuity or comprehension,” they said.
“The family is extremely appreciative of the time we had with her and we know that she is looking down upon us with love.”
Here below the poem she has wrote for Michael Jackson:
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 and walk our dances across the face of the moon
In 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 treasure
Though 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 him
He 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 not more than that
He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style
We had him
Whether we knew who he was or did not know, he was our’s and we were his
We had him
Beautiful, 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 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 Blackstar Square, in Johannesburg, in Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama and Birmingham England, we are missing Michael Jackson
But we do know that we had him
And we are the world.
STATEMENT FROM THE ESTATE:
MJ Estate remembers Maya Angelou. Maya Angelou was a hero to the millions of people whose lives she enriched with her extraordinary wisdom, powerful words, eternal message of hope as well as her commitment to teaching others and sharing her gifts. Upon Michael’s passing, Dr. Angelou wrote “We Had Him,” a poetic tribute to Michael in which she poignantly captured the world’s aching feeling of loss …with its joy at having known Michael.“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.”
As we mourn the loss of Dr. Angelou, we honor her for having given us all she had been given.
SOURCE: BBC / The Estate of Michael Jackson
