1. “Words, too, are a type of combat, for we always become what we refuse to say.” – Amanda Gorman
2. “In this truth, in this faith, we trust. For while we have our eyes on the future, History has its eyes on us.” – Amanda Gorman
3. “Perhaps pain is like a name, made to sing just for you.” – Amanda Gorman
4. “We destroy everything good just so it will not shame us. How easy it is to both leave & love this place.” – Amanda Gorman
5. “Like a page, we are only legible when opened to one another.” – Amanda Gorman
6. “To tell the truth, then, is to risk being remembered by its fiction.” – Amanda Gorman
7. “I have to interweave my poetry with purpose. For me, that purpose is to help people, and to shed a light on issues that have far too long been in the darkness.” – Amanda Gorman
8. “Just like a skill or any art, We cannot possess hope without practicing it. It is the most fundamental craft we demand of ourselves.” – Amanda Gorman
9. “Poetry and language are often at the heartbeat of movements for change.” – Amanda Gorman
10. “Our scars are the brightest Parts of us.” – Amanda Gorman
11. “That even as we grieved, we grew, That even as we hurt, we hoped, That even as we tired, we tried. That we’ll forever be tied together.” – Amanda Gorman
12. “For while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us” – Amanda Gorman
13. “What are we, if not what we see in another.” – Amanda Gorman
14. “The norms and notions of what “just is’ isn’t always “justice”.” – Amanda Gorman
15. “To be kept to the edges of existence is the inheritance of the marginalized.” – Amanda Gorman
16. “It’s said that ignorance is bliss. Ignorance is this: a vine that sneaks up a tree, killing not by poison, but by blocking out its light.” – Amanda Gorman
17. “Like light, we can’t be broken, even when we bend.” – Amanda Gorman
18. “By Goodbye, we truly mean: Let us be able to say hello again.” – Amanda Gorman
19. “This feeling might be pain, poetry, or both. But at least it is no lie. Ignorance isn’t bliss. Ignorance is to miss: to block ourselves from seeing sky.” – Amanda Gorman
20. “In everything you write, write something that is brave enough to be hopeful.” – Amanda Gorman
21. “When this ends, we’ll smile sweetly, finally seeing.” – Amanda Gorman
22. “When asking how others were faring, We did not expect an honest or full response. What words can answer how we’re remaining alive?” – Amanda Gorman
23. “Poetry is the lens we use to interrogate the history we stand on and the future we stand for.” – Amanda Gorman
24. “While we might feel small, separate, and all alone, our people have never been more tightly tethered. The question isn’t if we will weather this unknown, but how we will weather the unknown together.” – Amanda Gorman
25. “May we not just grieve, but give. May we not just ache, but act.” – Amanda Gorman
26. “I was obsessed with everything and anything; I wanted to learn everything, to read everything, to do everything. I was constantly on sensory overload. I’d hoard dozens of books in my second-grade cubby, and literally try to read two at a time, side by side.” – Amanda Gorman
27. “The slain fueled the lamps of a world latched to nights, our whole century brightened by blood.” – Amanda Gorman
28. “There is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.” – Amanda Gorman
29. “Since the world is round / There is no way to walk away / From each other, for even then / We are coming back together.” – Amanda Gorman
30. “We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace.” – Amanda Gorman
31. “Sometimes, we must call our monster out from under the bed to see he/she/it carries our face.” – Amanda Gorman
32. “We are desperate to flatten the curve. Oh, how we miss curving into each other.” – Amanda Gorman
33. “Let each dawn find us courageous, brought closer, heeding the lights before the fight is over.” – Amanda Gorman
34. “Because being American is more than a pride we inherit – It’s the past we step into, and how we repair it.” – Amanda Gorman
35. “Contrary to popular belief, it’s not easy for us to lie. Even the body has tells, even our blood runs toward truth.” – Amanda Gorman
36. “But tomorrow isn’t revealed, Rather rendered, refined. Wrought. Remember that fate isn’t fought Against. It is fought for. Again & again.” – Amanda Gorman
37. “The single greatest challenge of our era is to transform without wrath, war, or wariness.” – Amanda Gorman
38. “Change is made of choices, & choices are made of character.” – Amanda Gorman
39. “Not because we will never again know defeat, but because we will never again sow division.” – Amanda Gorman
40. “Please. Do not ask us who we are. The hardest part of grief / Is giving it a name.” – Amanda Gorman
41. “Whenever I listen to songs, I rewrite them in my head.” – Amanda Gorman
42. “The great responsibility I feel is to get people to put that power and that hope in themselves.” – Amanda Gorman
43. “Never forget that to be alone Has always been a price for some & a privilege for others.” – Amanda Gorman
44. “You don’t have to be a poet, you don’t have to be a politician or be in the White House to make an impact with your words.” – Amanda Gorman
45. “One of the most rewarding moments of my career is when I’m speaking to a child who tells me they have the same speech impediment that I had to overcome and that they’re going to keep writing or sharing their voice after hearing my story.” – Amanda Gorman
46. “We ignite not in the light, but in lack thereof, For it is in loss that we truly learn to love. In this chaos, we will discover clarity. In suffering, we must find solidarity.” – Amanda Gorman
47. “Trauma is like a season, deep & dependable, a force we board our windows against. Even when it passes, it will wail its wild way back to our porch.” – Amanda Gorman
48. “There is no better compass than compassion.” – Amanda Gorman
49. “Only when we’re drowning do we understand how fierce our feet can kick.” – Amanda Gorman
50. “The first bud of spring sings the other seeds into joining her uprising.” – Amanda Gorman
51. “Loss is the cost of loving.” – Amanda Gorman