Passion.Oprah.Service

I sit in my living room watching the season finale of The Oprah Show. Teary eyed. Truly feeling that I am saying goodbye to great friend. I can't remember a day in my life when I didn't know Oprah. There is no doubt that I grew up with her on my TV. In 25 years, mostly the last 10 or so, I have shared her stories, her laughs, her tears, and been inspired by her acts of service no matter how outrageous. She taught me that giving back is really the only thing that matters in life.

She shared her favorite things, many of those became my favorite things. She shared her books, one of which became my favorite book of all time, The Pillars of the Earth by Follet. She shared her home, her partner, her friends, her pets, her adventures, and her passions. She introduced me to medical breakthroughs, to eating healthier, to living my best life. She encouraged me to think about my life, my body, my health and to take charge of these things. It is because of her that I have an "I want" list. A list that at a very important time proved beneficial to my marriage.

Because she is an easy target, I have spent many minutes and hours defending her motives, her beliefs, and her actions. Anyone who knows me, knows I stand up for the people I care about and the things I believe in. Like all of us, Oprah is not perfect, but I believe she has done more to help than she has to hurt. One of my dreams was to be an audience member on the Oprah Show (fingers crossed for the my favorite things episode), that will never happen, now....unless.. there is a reunion show. One can only hope right!

In her finale show, she talked about how she has lived her passion and she wishes the same for all of us. It was during this discussion, that in Oprah fashion, I had an AHA moment. Recently, I have been toying with the idea of maybe becoming a classroom teacher. Asking myself questions like can I make a bigger difference with just 25 kids versus 500 plus. Today, I realize that I am in a situation where I can make the biggest difference. I get to know every child in my school. I get to see them once a week. I know each one on a different level, some much better than others, of course. For most of them, I get to grow and learn with them for 6 years. For some of them, I may be the only constant in their life for that long of a period. I get to teach them in a different way than their classroom teachers. I get to introduce them to new worlds and new ways of thinking through books and research. I am tired at the end of the day. I am beat down and defeated at times. At the same time, I am giving back and hoping that from this platform, I am making a difference.

Thank you, Oprah, for sharing 25 years of your life so that mine may be better.

Until next time...

XOXOXOXO