black
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I am a writer perhaps because I am not a talker.

Gwendolyn Brooks

The forties and fifties were years of high poet-incense; the language-flowers were thickly sweet. Those flowers whined and begged white folks to pick them, to find them lovable. Then the ’60s: Independent fire!
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Fire Flower Independent Language Poet Sweet
This is the urgency: Live! and have your blooming in the noise of the whirlwind.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Live Noise Urgent World Yourself
I swear to keep the dead upon my mind, / Disdain for all time to be overglad.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Death Mindset Myself Remember Time
When white and black meet today, sometimes there is a ready understanding that there has been an encounter between two human beings. But often there is only, or chiefly, an awareness that Two Colors are in the room.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Black Color Human Room Understand White
We real cool. We Left school. We Lurk late. We Strike straight. We Sing sin. We Thin gin. We Jazz June. We Die soon.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Cool Death Reality Sing
What, what am I to do with all of this life?
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Life Myself Philosophy Unknown
To be in love Is to touch things with a lighter hand. In yourself you stretch, you are well.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Hand Lights Love Touch Yourself
Reading is important – read between the lines. Don’t swallow everything.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Education Important Patience Reading Slow
Books are meat and medicine and flame and flight and flower steel, stitch, cloud and clout, and drumbeats on the air.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Air Book Flame Flower Medicine
I know that the Black emphasis must be not against white but FOR Black.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Black White
With melted opals for my milk, Pearl-leaf for my cracker.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Milk Myself
It is brave to be involved. To be not fearful to be unresolved.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Brave Character Fear
A writer should get as much education as possible, but just going to school is not enough; if it were, all owners of doctorates would be inspired writers.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Education Enough Inspirational Possible Writing
It is brave to be involved.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Brave Initiative One Liner
Sometimes you have to deal / Devilishly with drowning men in order to swim them to shore.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Deal Devil Friendship Man Save Yourself
Each body has its art.
GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Art Body One Liner

I am a writer perhaps because I am not a talker.

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I am a writer perhaps because I am not a talker.

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