"THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE YOUR OWN PATH IS A SACRED PRIVILEGE"
Pic.: Madan Manik
Oprah Winfrey
turned 60, yesterday (29th Jan). And, what a remarkable life it has
been!
I have been a great admirer of Oprah ever since I
first watched one of her talk shows, some twenty-odd years ago. My admiration for
this woman has shot up thirty notches higher since I first had her glimpse on
TV!
Some people have come on this planet to touch and
make a difference in others’ lives. Oprah, I believe, is one of those people.
Imagine, the kind of impact she has left with her simple talk shows… We watch
them because of their genuine warmth and transforming power. Honestly, every
time I watch one of her talk shows, I come out a little more transformed, a
little more touched, healed!
When I look at Oprah’s phenomenal success, and
her legend as a woman of substance, I can only conclude this: She discovered
her heart’s calling, and just followed it with all that she possessed. If we
read her famous quotes, it becomes abundantly clear to us that she went by her
heart’s calling. In one of her quotes, she says:
“Understand
that the right to choose your own path is a sacred privilege. Use it. Dwell in
possibility.”
In another, she says: “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what
excites you,”
The most important reason why I admire Oprah is that
she has that innate ability to see good in other people. And, that one ability
of hers brings out the best in every soul she talks to on her shows… Yes, from
a simple soul to President Obama… She makes them all open up!
“I believe that every single event in life happens is an opportunity to
choose love over fear,” this is one
of Oprah’s famous lines, and how true it is!
She has demonstrated by living her own life by choosing love over fear -
living it with dignity, converting her tragedies into triumphs, distilling
wisdom from pain… and, along that path, transforming lives of millions of people
in this world!
From Oprah’s life, it becomes clear to us, that
if we follow our dreams with all our focus, passion and dedication – and, above
all, with all our sincerity – there is no reason why we can not see our dreams
come true… Money, fame and power are nothing, as she rightly reminds us, unless we use them to achieve ‘greater things’ in life…
Many of us
may find ourselves doing, in life, what Oprah wants us to do: do our work with
all the love and passion in the world… Yet, we might silently wonder why we
don’t hit big time the way an Oprah does… Yes, in the end, we might console
ourselves saying all of us can’t be Oprahs… We needn’t be!
I leave you with one of my favorite Oprah quotes:
“You
know you are on the road to success
if you would do your job, and not be paid for
it.”
Are you smiling, like I am doing?
Maybe, the key to the treasure called ‘Success’
hides somewhere in between these lines…!
Happy b’day dear Oprah. May you live long and
strong, always.
GERALD D’CUNHA
Comments
----- Prakash Dhingra