The very popular poem entitled A Woman Should Have has been attributed to Maya Angelou as author for a very long time as “Maya Angelou’s Best Poem Ever”, but as much as this delightful poem seems like the works of Maya Angelou, this poem below is not her work.
Maya Angelou herself has even denied authorship of A Woman Should Have on her official website, and Snopes.com has done its best to clear up any misconceptions of who wrote A Woman Should Have too, but the tall tales continue.
The real author of this wonderful poem about women is none other than Pamela Redmond Satran, and the original poem was entitled “30 Things Every Woman Should Have & Should Know By The Time She’s 30”, where the list of 30 things appeared under her byline in Glamour Magazine in May of 1997.
Pamela Redmond Satran has written five novels including The Man I Should Have Married, Babes in Captivity, Younger, Suburbanistas, and The Home For Wayward Supermodels. Pamela has also written many articles are magazine publications such as Glamour, Parenting, Bon Appetit, Good Housekeeping, The New York Times, Mens Journal, Redbook, Ladies Home Journal and The Washington Post. If that doesn’t tell you that freelance writing pays very well, it’s your loss.
A Woman Should Have
by Pamela Redmond Satran
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ..a youth she’s content to leave behind….
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …a past juicy enough that she’s looking forward to retelling it in her old age….
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ..a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …one friend who always makes her laugh… and one who lets her cry…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ….a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …a feeling of control over her destiny…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…how to fall in love without losing herself..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…HOW TO QUIT A JOB, BREAK UP WITH A LOVER, AND CONFRONT A FRIEND WITHOUT RUINING THE FRIENDSHIP…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…when to try harder… and WHEN TO WALK AWAY…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…that she can’t change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…that her childhood may not have been perfect…but its over…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…what she would and wouldn’t do for love or more…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…how to live alone… even if she doesn’t like it.
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW..whom she can trust, whom she can’t, and why she shouldn’t take it personally…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…where to go…be it to her best friend’s kitchen table…or a charming inn in the woods…when her soul needs soothing…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…what she can and can’t accomplish in a day…a month…and a year…
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I love this poem. I have seen it many times before, but every time I see it, I am inspired by it as if for the first time