Oprah's Weight

I love Oprah. I love that she is a powerful woman who uses her influence to make this world a better place. I love the spiritual seeking Oprah--the one who is visibly delighted when Skyp-ing readers of her book club pick, "A New Earth" with Ekhart Tolle last summer. I love her magazine and I know if I had the time to watch her show regularly, I would love her show. I love that Oprah makes people: Dr. Phil, Suze Orman, countless authors whose books she recommends, Bob Greene, etc. etc. etc.

And I love that she is still talking about her weight, though she is not. In the January issue of "O" she is on the cover juxtaposed with a picture of herself at 160 fit-and-trim pounds. She weighs 200 now. In the article she admits to all the head-shot covers of the last year of issues because, as she said, "I didn't want to be seen."

I love her because she is just so honest. I love her because she is just so courageous.

I wouldn't have done that cover.

I'm not addicted to food; I'm addicted to looking good. Weight for me isn't about health, it's about how I look. I'm 53, post menopausal with all the body changes that go with my age and hormone levels. I've had liposuction. I've been on no sugar, low-carb diets. I've gone from a size 6 five years ago to a size 10 now. And I have worked on accepting myself, loving myself just as I am. I know the talk as well as Oprah. And, like Oprah, I feel like a fat cow. There I said it. Oprah gave me permission. That's why I love her.

What Oprah says in the article is what she was hungry for was balance.

"What I've learned this year is that my wieght issue isn't about eating less or working out harder, or even about a malfunctioning thyroid. It's about my life being out of balance, with too much work and not enough play, not enough time to calm down. I let the well run dry," she said.

What am I hungry for? Work I love. I'm hungry to do good in this world. I'm hungry to write regularly on topics that reach other women. And I'm hungry to be a woman who is her word and doesn't hide. I'm not hungry for looking good; I'm hungry for being good.

I love Oprah's closing words.

"In 2009, dare I, dare all of us give ourselves all the love and care we need to be healthy, to be well, and to be whole? I know for sure that for each moment of this brand-new year, I'm gonna try."

I'm on it.

What are you hungry for?