Weeks ago, just like all the other Americans, Amanda Gorman was spending some peaceful quarantine moments
in the not so peaceful times when all of a sudden she received news that changed
her life. At 22, she was all set to become the youngest poet to write and recite a poem at a President’s inauguration ceremony.

American poet and activist from Los Angeles, Amanda, of whom the incoming first lady is a big fan of, was picked by Jill Biden herself.

Gorman, who will join a small group of poets, which includes legends like Robert Frost, Maya Angelou, Miller Williams, Elizabeth Alexander and Richard Blanco, has been recruited to help mark the presidential swearing-in event.

Also Read: Joe Biden’s Inauguration: Key events and ceremony timings

But two weeks ago, Gorman was struggling to live up to the task she was assigned and she was failing miserably, at least, that’s what she thought and it seems fair considering the responsibility given to her, that none of her predecessors faced.

She had to write a poem that would not only instill hope in Americans but provide them the assurity of a better tomorrow, at a time when they are grappling with a horrific pandemic, political violence and partisan division.

“I had this huge thing, probably one of the most important things I’ll ever do in my career,” she said in an interview. “It was like, if I try to climb this mountain all at once, I’m just going to pass out.” NYT quoted Gorman as saying.

But she rose above the doubts and penned down the harsh realities as well as the tender dreams of the future.

Also Read: A message from American kids for their ‘first girl Vice President’ Kamala Harris

Discussing about her creation for the 46th President of the US, Gorman told NYT,  “In my poem, I’m not going to in any way gloss over what we’ve seen over the past few weeks and, dare I say, the past few years. But what I really aspire to do in the poem is to be able to use my words to envision a way in which our country can still come together and can still heal.”

In 2014, Gorman was named the first Youth Poet Laureate of Los Angeles and became the country’s first National Youth Poet Laureate three years later.

Amanda also became the first person to openly announce her plan to run for presidency in 2036, Los Angeles reported.

The 22 year old is also set to release her first of two children’s books, ‘Change Sings’.