Considered Suicide By Ntozake Shange: Poetry Analysis

“I found god in myself & I loved her/ I loved her fiercely” I encountered these words at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. I stopped and stared at them. I read the line over and over again trying to get an understanding of it. These words suddenly gave me a feeling of empowerment and I didn’t know why. What I did know was that I had to buy the book the quote came from. The line comes from a choreopeom by Ntozake Shange titled, “For Colored Girls who have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf.” When I finally received the book, I thought from its size that I would be done in less than a day, but what I soon came to realize was that this book was not meant to be rushed.
This book captivated
This poem reminded me of a situation I had with someone I considered my best friend. We one day got into an argument which they blamed me for something I didn’t do but no matter how much I explained myself they wouldn’t believe me. This hurt me to a point where I closed myself off to people who truly cared about me. Through this experience I learned that everyone isn’t going to treat you fairly, but that you should always treat yourself with respect. The story doesn’t end there. A couple of months later they came back to me, with head hanging telling me how sorry they were. That they were wrong for blaming me. I told them “I forgave you a long time ago,” and when they asked me why my response was, “being sad and angry over something pointless would not do any good.” It was not going to make me feel better or make me happy. So I forgave, forgot and moved on with my life. When we started talking again, everyday there was a sorry. Saying it made them feel better, not me. Through this I learned that I didn’t need apologies I only need me. Fierce and