“Ironically one of my most desolate moments, barely being able to speak in between sobs of despair, I called Maya looking for comfort and sympathy,” writes Oprah. “Instead she sternly chided me, ‘STOP IT’ she said. ‘Stop your crying right now and say THANK YOU!'”
“‘Why would I say thank you for this?’ I said. ‘Say thank you because you know God, and you know He put a rainbow in every cloud. The rainbow is coming. Say thank you even though you can’t see it. It’s already there.'”
Dr. Angelou also taught Oprah why courage is so important in that same phone conversation. She revealed that above all, courage is the most important of all the virtues. “Without it, you can practice no other. Oprah says that courage is still feeling fear but still doing the necessary work to overcome. And in the very act of bravery you don’t feel brave but just feel what is true and most real.”
Oprah’s post comes the day after Dr. Angelou was honored in Washington D.C. at The National Theater. The event was a fundraiser for her local charter schools. Common, Lil’ Mo and Patti Autstin provided the musical entertainment.
At last night’s event, Dr. Angelou admitted she wanted to share her wisdom with the generations to come just like she did with Oprah. “Well this is true, for as soon as you get a blessing give it away. Absolutely, when you learn, teach. When you get, give.”
