( CNN ) -- I lost a friend and mentor today . Maya Angelou was the voice of three generations . Her poetry spanned our journey , chronicled our hearts and documented our struggles as we moved from the orations of Martin Luther King to the presidency of Barack Obama . `` Dr. '' Maya Angelou was a phenomenal woman . A rousing spirit , a joyful soul . A remarkable and gifted writer , a trailblazer , an activist , a mother . A hero . She was a woman who cooked up greens that could move you to dance . And yes , she danced , she loved to move . And she moved us all . She loved her black skin and her hair . Growing up in the South , I learned to love my own skin and hair just as she taught us to . But Maya was not stuck on color or gender or religion or sexual orientation . She was fixated on humanity and helping to bring love and kindness into this world . That 's perhaps what I cherish about her the most : Like every great artist , she emerged from deep and sorrowful struggle to reveal a beautiful , confident , calm and wise soul . She used that struggle to transform herself and made us believe that we , too , could transform ourselves as well . Like the incredible tall oak trees of her beloved Arkansas , she was rooted in culture , grounded in the goodness of this earth and her amazing gift of poetry . She had a talent for weaving words into songs and songs into melodies . She was n't afraid to sway her hips . And she inspired us to do the same . Opinion : How Maya Angelou gave me life . Maya , we did n't tire of you . I can still hear those words she spoke on that chilly day , at the first inauguration of her fellow Arkansan , William Jefferson Clinton . Her poem , `` On the Pulse of Morning , '' is too long for me to quote in its entirety here , but I urge you , for your own sake , go read it . Here are a few of its lines : . The Rock cries out today , you may stand on me , . But do not hide your face . Across the wall of the world , . A River sings a beautiful song . It says , . Come rest here by my side . ... Come , . Clad in peace and I will sing the songs . The Creator gave to me when I and the . Tree and the rock were one . Maya Angelou also had a playful side . Like any good friend , she enjoyed the company of people . Once , my friend Minyon Moore hosted a luncheon in honor of Betty Shabazz , Cicely Tyson , Coretta Scott King and Maya Angelou . It was a moment for us , the up-and-coming , to meet our heroes , to sit at their feet and learn from them . Before we could break bread ( cornbread ) , Maya had everyone laughing . She was a gifted storyteller and her warmth filled up many empty hearts . She made a place for so many folks in her life , in her kitchen or on her stage . Maya was born wise and when she talked , you could hear the ancient wisdom of our ancestors . She carried that warrior spirit from Africa . Maya Angelou remembered by those she inspired . I grew up with her poems and stories . They inspired me , they encouraged me , they taught me . I still have the paperback copies of her books I bought when I was a girl . I often wondered when I read one of her poems or stories for the first time , how does she know me ? How does she understand so well who I am , what I 'm going through , what questions and doubts , and triumphs and joys , I experience ? But that , of course , is what a great poet does . She speaks for herself , but she speaks for us all . And the amazing thing about Maya Angelou was that , although she was a black woman , her poems touched the souls of all Americans . For instance , what immigrant or child of immigrants , what Holocaust survivor or child of a survivor , what adolescent or mother of an adolescent does not recognize his or her own history in the justly famous , `` I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings '' ? Maya Angelou : Some of her most powerful speeches . Let her rest now . Rest with Malcolm and Betty , with Coretta and Martin and Dorothy Height , with James Baldwin and Langston Hughes . Let her dance with James Brown , Michael Jackson , and rejoice with Mahalia Jackson . Most of all , let her smile and be at peace with Mandela . I will honor her today by rereading some of her poems and stories . I urge you to do the same . She gave us the gift of her words and we should treasure them . She was phenomenal , someone I loved and will forever cherish . So , thank you Maya . A phenomenal woman . Join us on Facebook.com/CNNOpinion .
Donna Brazile shares the joy of knowing Maya Angelou and the pain of losing her . Angelou , she says , was a writer , a trailblazer , an activist , a mother , a hero . She is also a woman who had to fight for everything that she has today.