Don't Speak

The first thought that came to mind when little Maya decided not to speak was, "Yea good luck with that!" I truly thought it wasn't possible because I thought of myself. I am the blabbermouth of the century. Sometimes I wish I could just remain quiet just to take in the moments that occur. That I am just present and being in the moment. But little Maya's description on what it takes to be silent is almost a paradox in and of itself. She says, "I discovered that to achieve perfect silence all one had to do was attached themselves leechlike to sound" (pg. 87). Only in this way was she able to maintain her silence. It seems to me that the only to be quiet is to just soak up the world around you so that you are so preoccupied with what is happening you don't have to even think about talking. This whole memoir threw me for a loop. I did not think she would literally stop talking. I thought the title was a metaphor for how she found her "real" self and therefore is able to talk with authority rather than being too meek or like a doormat. I find that this memoir is very compelling while also probably scandalous because of how Maya Angelou describes rape threw the eyes of her little girl self. I find that extremely different from anything I've ever read. She even describes at first having liked it because someone was holding her. This little girl so confused and likes the fact that someone is showing her love. That is what she describes the holding as... love. I found this the saddest party of all. Her only human real contact in St. Louis was the saddest and most dangerous of all.