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This year for her birthday, my mother didn't get a card, a gift or even dinner out. She got Oprah.
Last weekend was the 10th anniversary of O magazine, and to celebrate, Oprah threw a big party in New York called the Live Your Best Life Weekend, with talks by Suze Orman, Donna Brazile, Nate Berkus, Dr. Oz, Martha Beck and other writers from O magazine -- plus Oprah herself, of course.
It's been a tough year for my mom and me. Last August, my stepfather was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he died in January. Since then, Mom's been temporarily living with me, continuing to work as a teacher and trying to deal with her grief. My stepfather and my mother were together nearly 40 years, and it's been a huge adjustment for her and for me. Add to that the fact that he did all the driving, and things have been very tough.
Though I consider myself a pretty decent daughter, my mother and I are very different people. We approach the world in very different ways, and since she can be quite controlling, I have to put up hard and fast boundaries. That can be exhausting, and it pushes me to the edge of insanity.
But we do have in common our love for Oprah Winfrey.
Mom's always wanted to go to Oprah's show, but I've never been able to get tickets. When I saw the Live Your Best Life ad, I knew we should go. Oprah's ending her show next year, so this was probably one of the few chances we would get to see her in person.
The weekend kicked off with a reception at Gotham Hall, where we snacked on mini hotdogs and New York-style pretzels, and sipped champagne. Mom's not used to cocktail parties, but she marveled at the pretty decorations and candles and gobbled up the snacks.
Oprah's talk began at 9:30 the next morning, but the doors opened at 8. When we got there at 8:30, the line was already around the front of the Javits convention center, down about three more blocks and snaking toward the river. Everyone was good-natured, though, and the crowd management was excellent. As Mom and I approached the entrance, a guard held us back as several cars pulled up. All of a sudden some woman yelled out, "Oprah!"
I turned around thinking, "Yeah, right! It's Oprah. Nice joke, lady!"
But the joke was on me. There, from the lowered window of a small sedan, was a waving arm clad in yellow, attached to one of the most powerful women in the world.
"Good morning!" She called out.
Oprah! It was her!
People screeched, the car inched, Oprah waved and waved, and I fumbled for my camera. I got off one shot before waving back to her and yelling along with everyone else.
My shot just showed a yellow sleeve and no face, but the nice woman in front of me, Michelle, got a better shot with her iPhone. Thanks again, Michelle.
When we got inside, I took a stroll to the sponsor gallery, and who did I see but my fellow BlogHer Contributing Editor Mom101 of Cool Mom Picks! She was hanging with @thatkristen and @alphamom.
Then it was time for Oprah's welcome. She was introduced like the rock star she is and talked about inspiration and how everyone was in charge of her own destiny. She also joked about the number of men in attendance and how brave they were. Of the 6,000 attendees, I'd say about a quarter were men. We stormed the mens' rooms all day long! Like many public spaces, Javits must have been designed by a man. How else do you explain so few stalls in the ladies' rooms?
Oprah said a few more words and then introduced Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the books Eat, Pray, Love and Committed. I had never heard her speak before, and she was an amazing storyteller. She spoke about how hard women often are on themselves and how we have to give that up if we're to truly move forward.
Next up was Suze Orman. My mother loves her. Suze burst onto the
