Happy Fourth of July from Oprah Winfrey

Ever since Oprah's finale, she has been sending mass emails to those who did email her at oprah@oprah.com.  I was one of those people and periodically I get messages from her.   I pretend they are only written to me.  It makes me feel special ;).  This is the latest.  It brought tears to my eyes.  God bless her.  

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Hello Friends of Summer

I'm So happy to be back in the USA.

Spent a week with my girls in S.A..

They were all stressed for tests, but doing fine. No major crisis this trip. 

I love being with them and talking to them about all things important.

When I 'm there I'm talking from the time I get up til I go to bed, about EVERYTHING teenage girls are going through. It's the same all over the world.

I'm going back this fall to teach a class; calling it Life 101.

All the stuff I wish someone had told me about how the world works.

Should be fun since I love to teach. And they're like sponges.

Like 12th graders everywhere this first class is both anxious and excited about going to college.

Most will be the first in their family. So it's a very big deal for them, and they're feeling the pressure. 

Nothing like going out of country to have an even deeper appreciation for our own U.S.A. The Freedom to have options, something we often take for granted, is the most striking to me.

When Chris Rock was last on the show he said, "real wealth is having options". I thought that was pretty profound.

I now stress to my girls that education prepares you to have options. Without it you have none. 

Just took a walk around the neighborhood watching sprinklers on the back lawn. (I love sprinklers) Made me think about the red dirt road I traveled from Mississippi (no sprinklers) to the here and now.

And how that journey could have only been possible in the U.S.A. 

I know the 4th of July has turned into picnics and fireworks, and barbecue moments. But it's worthy of a pause, to think about what it really means to have Freedom. 

And while we're pausing think about those who sacrifice to make it so. 

Wishing you all a Peaceful and Happy 4th of July.

Oprah