A Different Kind of Mourning

Most of the time when we think of mourning, we think of the loss of one's life. According to Webster's the definition for mourn is to feel or express grief or sorrow.

When my sister Kelly was little she went to "Karen's house." Karen was a saint of a baby-sitter that ran a small daycare out of her home in HamiIlton, NJ. I would go there too during the summer and when I had off from school because our mom worked full time. I remember late in the afternoon as parents would start to trickle in to pick up their kids, Karen would always have Oprah on the television. We spent most of our days there outside playing in the backyard or at her parents pool. When I think back, it was probably the one hour a day Karen (sort of) had "Karen time". We would always give her a hard time; "Oprah? Why do you always have to watch Oprah?

As I found myself sobbing on the couch, happy that I saved the last three episodes on our DVR to watch all at once, I thought back to Karen and how I ended up being just like her. It was hard for a seven year old to understand The Oprah Winfrey show and how significant an impact it made on millions of people everyday.As I started to grow up I'd watch Oprah with my friend Chrissy during the summer. I know there are people out there that can't stand Oprah (although I really don't know how that would be possible if you knew what kind of person she is, the good that she's done for tens of thousands of people, the awareness she has brought to countless worthy causes, her authenticity and the genuine messages she delivered everyday.)

I was in mourning, and I know that sounds silly. I was feeling a sense of loss. The tears fell down my face because I learned so much from Oprah's shows. I think about all of stories I've seen about everyday people that had something good or bad happen to them and how it changed my perspective or brought awareness. A lot of times the show made me want to be a better person and reminded me we all can make a difference in this world.

In high school and college I'd watch it here and there if I was home (which wasn't all that often at 4pm.) Since DVR came into the picture, I've seen every episode of Oprah. It was an hour of "me" time, whether I was on the elliptical or watching it on the couch. I rarely multi-tasked while I watched; no computer or magazines on my lap. I wanted to take it all in, whatever the message was that day.

During the last 25 episodes or so, everyday they counted down to how many were left. I started to wonder what the last show would be like. Who would be Oprah's guests? Would she do a final surprise giveaway?
How much emotion would she show? I have to say, in the end, her last show was perfect. It was as far away from self-congratulating and ego-centric as you can get. It was pretty much everything I've learned from Oprah summed up into one episode. It made me want to be a better person all over again, and to a greater degree. It made me think "who do I influence and how can I make a difference? How can I bring awareness? What causes do I truly care about?"

I am sad there is no more Oprah at 4pm during the week. I wonder if there will ever be another show with so much power and influence; it will be interesting to see if anyone can come close to what Oprah has accomplished.  

Some of my favorite parts of the show were...