In March, Maya Angelou greeted 10,000 ASCD Annual Conference attendees in Chicago, Ill., with a song of hope and gratitude:
"When it looked like the sun wouldn’t shine anymore; God put a rainbow in the cloud."
It's not just that we have rainbows in the sky, but in the clouds themselves, she explained. So that even when it seems like the rain won't let up, we have something there to encourage us.
"You have sacrificed a lot to be here," Dr. Angelou stated. "I'm here to tell you how grateful I am and remind you that you are rainbows in clouds." She wouldn't be where she is today, if not for the "rainbows" in her life, she added.
Widely known as an author, poet, educator, activist, and actress, the 84-year-old Angelou charmed the packed convention with heartfelt parables of the teachers who emboldened her to weather the storms of life.
As a 3-year-old, she learned to read from her grandmother, and she learned the multiplication tables from her