Down Memory Lane

This evening I watched the 2000 Miss DC USA pageant and Miss Teen USA 1997 (I was in attendance to support Cherie Alexander the DC delegate). These VHS (yes VHS) tapes brought back so many memories and the reasons why I still love pageantry.

Viewing these videos I noticed how much I have matured over the past 10 years. My great enthusiam and zest for life was evident via my onstage introduction to the judges and audience. My confidence in myself was overflowing and the belief in myself was monumental. Pageantry allows us to challenge our selves to be our best by setting a goal and working toward it. Additionally, I formed life long friendship with the ladies that I met while competing at the state level for the Miss Teen USA and Miss USA pageants. I will forever cherish my experience. I must say a very special thank you to Ms. Althea Smith, the executive producer of Miss Teen DC USA and Miss DC USA pageants, because it is her belief in my dreams and the dedication she has showed in our community via these productions that has shaped me into the lady I am today.

While in grade school we learned this poem while studying the works of Maya Angelou however I forgot it until watching the Miss DC USA tape. The choreographer's eight year old daughter dedicated this poem to us as a tribute to our uniqueness and individual beauty.

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
Phenomenally.
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
Phenomenally.
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
Phenomenally.
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 of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Ladies remeber we are all unique and our beauty radiates in a way that others might not be able to pinpoint however it still shines brightly.