It’s peak busy season in the office as we’re preparing for summer departures; plus I’ve picked up additional workload to organize our popular Asia and Latin America placements due to a Coordinator leaving early for her pregnancy. Needless to say, my days are busy and full of ‘adventure’. Yet, knowing that it was Oprah’s last show, my team and I took an hour this afternoon to watch her final episode.
We all know how dedicated, inspirational, and powerful Oprah is, and how much of an influence she is to our culture. She’s got the Midas touch. Everything she touches turns to gold. Let’s think about it…all the books that have been featured in Oprah’s Book Club turn in to instant best sellers; any product or service that makes it on Oprah’s Favorite List becomes a must-have in the market; all featured guests that she brings on succeeds to their own independent stardom (ie: Dr. Phil, Bob Greene, Suze Orman, Dr. Oz, and much more). How does she do it?
I can’t claim to be a true die-hard Oprah fan. I don’t watch much television so I’ve probably only watched a few episodes through the years. I have subscribed to her O magazine several times in the past, but with time constraints and attention deficiencies I usually half-heartedly flip through the pages at airports or wee hours before bed. But, there is something about her that makes me want to listen, read, and hear what she has to say. Admit it--you feel it too, right? C’mon, um, millions feel it.
It’s all about the connection. As Oprah explained, “Something in me connected with each of you in a way that allowed me to see myself in you and you in me. I became your surrogate—to ask the questions, deliver the answers, learn, grow, expand my thinking, challenge my beliefs and the way I looked at the world. I listened and grew, and I know you grew along with me…Sometimes I was the teacher, and more often, you taught me.”
Isn’t that the what life is supposed to be about? Connecting ourselves to exchange ideas, love, opinions, beliefs, experiences, and so much more. To teach and learn. An opportunity for us to Discover the Similarities and Share the Differences.
So if in Oprah we trust, who does Oprah trust? Who does she turn to and how did she get so successful? Although I may have missed four thousand five hundred and sixty episodes; this one answer pretty much highlighted her 25 years on air for me: “My team and Jesus. Nothing but the hand of God has made this possible for me. I know I've never been alone, and you haven't either. And I know that that presence, that flow—some people call it grace—is working in my life at every single turn. And yours too, if you let it in. It's closer than your breath, and it is yours for the asking…Even when I didn't have a name for it, I could feel the voice bigger than myself speaking to me, and all of us have that same voice. Be still and know it. You can acknowledge it or not. You can worship it or not. You can praise it, you can ignore it or you can know it. Know it. It's always there speaking to you and waiting for you to hear it in every move, in every decision. I wait and I listen. I'm still—I wait and listen for the guidance that's greater than my meager mind.”
When I think of my experiences, I have to count my blessings because God has been good. When I think of who I turn to for support with Cultural Embrace, I too rely on my team and Jesus. I am by no means Oprah. But I think it’s pretty cool that God shares His unconditional love equally. No matter who you are. It took me a looong time to realize and acknowledge it, but once I did, life feels so much more peaceful, richer, and easier. In fact, taking an hour this afternoon, or the time to write this blog (which by the way wasn’t anywhere near my list of things to do, but I can’t ignore this whisper in my ear) didn’t really phase me. I got enough work done to call it a day, hit the gym, and connect with friends. There is more work, sometimes I don’t think it ever ends, but that’s the gift that keeps on giving, and allows me to look forward to my inbox each day.
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