Thursday, May 20, 2010

Lovin me some Oprah...

Words taken directly from Oprah Winfrey: I will tell you that there have been no failures in my life. I don’t want to sound like some metaphysical queen, but there have been no failures. There have been some tremendous lessons.



If this was my eleventh grade Creative Writing class Mrs. Eschler would stand all six feet three inches of herself in front of the room and demand we locate the value of such comments, “People’s beliefs begin with thought—nothing exists on earth without there being thought first.”



Is it wrong to say Oprah has never tossed a pity party?



Oh boy…here it comes, that extremely tiresome story of the glass being half full or half empty. Nope, cuz I put less focus on the quantity and more on substance. If its milk, wine or Kool-Aid wash it before putting it in the dishwasher; I can’t stand stains in places I’ll be one day be drinking from.



Oprah didn’t say she’s never had a bad day—she’s admitting to not having failures.



The assumed rough patch on the path makes itself visible and immediately we’re quick to collide with a conclusion that “we” write not the lessons required to achieve a more acceptable place of value. Sort of reminds me of what Mom always preached, “Pick your battles.” Or to put it in more understandable terms; most people stop drinking celebration amounts of alcohol in their late 20’s because it’s no longer fun to wake up the next morning.



If Oprah stubs her toe on the bedpost she doesn’t spend the day moaning about it…her quote reveals a goal to better understand how to prevent it from happening again. Terrible times are never welcome, its never "if" they arrive but rather "when…"and in that shadow the presentation of self confidence rises to help heal by identifying the reason leading us to a purpose to which we’re fully capable of teaching.



I sat with a Presbyterian minister yesterday discussing the trials and challenges presented to the two of us over the past year—he had cancer, I had a heart attack…neither of us were bogged down with who, what, where and why? Looking into each others souls it was easy to see the assumed evils that attack each of our every days had in fact become reason to better understand so that others going through immediate changes can be given a newer hope to hold,



I will tell you that there have been no failures in my life. I don’t want to sound like some metaphysical queen, but there have been no failures. There have been some tremendous lessons.



I can’t be the only one who’s learned to ignore the billions Oprah is worth and finds more worth in how many she inspires with each passing minute. Not every message is meant to affect your quality…just like not every John Lennon and Paul McCartney song is going to slam you into a sing it out loud performance.



All too often one is left standing at the alter wondering why life didn’t give them what they deserved—a sense of entitlement. We purchase blue jeans with rips already in them. We have tattoos plastered on our bodies that showcase broken hearts, drops of blood, birds, cartoon figures and Asian writing that means something totally different than what you were told…it’s our sense of entitlement to mark up our skin like a writing tablet.



I’m so guilty of this! I have six tattoos, each telling the tale of multitude chapter changes as if to symbolize personal victory…and in the end the mind forgets leaving you with sagging pools of Indian ink. What we need to be tattooing are ATM numbers and computer passwords. There’s nothing worse than hitting the button that reads: Forget your password?



I will tell you that there have been no failures in my life. I don’t want to sound like some metaphysical queen, but there have been no failures. There have been some tremendous lessons.



Adopting and or approaching a more acceptable way of putting a positive spin on trips and blunders come with a price—friends, coworkers and family members come at you two different ways, they can’t stand up beat presentations that tend to always be walking forward and beg you to keep away from their self designed bad day or they latch onto you like sea urchins you can’t shake and if you do, like a good booger it can’t be flicked off.



Julia Cameron of Artist Way fame calls such behavior a wet blanket. Relationships are shattered. Extra pressure is put on your shoulders, creating anger, lack of confidence, trust and faith which is usually fired off in emails or seen on Face Book walls. Who needs to watch General Hospital and All My Children when real life American drama is put on public display in places the entire world can sit back and watch, then participate with by adding more fuel to the fire?



Its completely natural to see people battling it out on a Face Book wall then toss in a couple of thoughts that are guaranteed to freshen up the battle, all in the name of being entertained. There’s no better way to earn a quick phone call. No wonder Oprah continues to win, she’s not weighing her life down with self inflictions and or other people’s Grim reaper walks through passages that feel as if they’re constantly under attack.



The best way to better your day…be aware of how you’re treating the man or woman in the mirror. If all you’re doing is combing your hair and brushing your teeth while complaining about how your butts gotten bigger and your arms don’t look as round as they used to…coworkers, friends and family are getting the same treatment but in ways that say, “I’m better than you cuz…” Nobody wins in a world where there's no flavor on a burger. A true winner involves more than just a chunk of meat. You need the onions, mustard, pickles, lettuce and everything else that makes life yummy and worth chasing again tomorrow.



I will tell you that there have been no failures in my life. I don’t want to sound like some metaphysical queen, but there have been no failures. There have been some tremendous lessons.



arroecollins@clearchannel.com

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