Me, I love Oprah - always have - though I don't watch the show every day, and I'm pretty picky (thanks to Tivo) about which episodes I do watch. But honestly, Oprah has enriched my life in many ways, and I kind of feel that we grew up together (we're both 58 right now). Best thing about Oprah - the way she has promoted reading and writing. I've loved getting to know authors better by watching the Oprah show and reading the magazine...like Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, Barbara Kingsolver, Anne Lamott, Eckhart Tolle, etc.
When an email called "The Oprah Show's Greatest Lessons" came into my inbox, I decided to check it out, and something Toni Morrison said rang true to me and I agreed with Oprah that it was a great lesson...the idea of being delighted when someone we love walks in the room. Two thoughts:
First, my dad. Talk about being thrilled to see anyone and everyone. Evan is better at greetings than anyone I know. When you walk into his house or he into yours, you know he's very glad to see you, and you get a big hello, smile, and a hug.
Second, smiling at our spouses. When you read Toni Morrison's wisdom (below), add your spouse to the list of people to smile at. I've regarded this as important in a marriage, and when I have to write some kind of advice in a wedding reception sign-in book, I sometimes write, "Be sure to keep smiling at each other." (Think about how much newlyweds smile.) This came to me one day when Scott was backing out of our driveway and I was on the porch watching him drive away. And he looked at me and smiled and I realized how much that meant to our relationship. So simple but really very powerful. Thus my hearty amen to the following "great lesson" from Toni:
The Oprah Show's Greatest Lessons
The Oprah Winfrey Show | May 13, 2011
One of Oprah's favorite lessons comes from Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison and the question she asked of all parents: "When your child walks in the room, does your face light up?"
"When my children used to walk in the room, when they were little, I looked at them to see if they had buckled their trousers or if their hair was combed or if their socks were up," she told Oprah in 2000. "You think your affection and your deep love is on display because you're caring for them. It's not. When they
see you, they see the critical face. But if you let your face speak what's in your heart...because when they walked in the room, I was glad to see them. It's just as small as that, you see."
It's always fun when someone special shows up - here's my cousin Diane fixing up flowers on her father's grave. Diane has just completed all the auditioning and training to become a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. She and her husband Rob (also in the Choir) brought her mother.
Aunt Norma made the WHOLE dinner for us - she's a fabulous cook and organizer.
