Monday Morning Motivation: This, Too, Shall Pass!

Monday Morning Motivation:
This, Too, Shall Pass!

HELLLLOOOOO all! Happy Monday! I’m headed to Florida to film a couple of episodes of Sweet Retreats, this time in Tampa and Jacksonville. Trust me, with the winter we’ve had in New York this year, I’m ready to beat feet outta here!

I was tooling around on Facebook the other night when I saw, once again, the tragic story of L’Wren Scott, the fashion designer who was also rocker Mick Jagger’s long-time girl-friend. In case you haven’t heard, Scott hung herself a few weeks ago while Jagger was on tour. She did not leave a suicide note so there are stories and speculation as to what could have possibly led the successful designer to kill herself.

She had a rich and famous boyfriend, high-profile clientele and a fabulous life, at least according to her Instagram feed. She had it all.

Or did she?

Many of the stories coming out in the days following Scott’s death tell a different story. According to several reports, Scott was deeply in debt and just days away from shuttering her business.

She probably felt like a failure.

That’s not a feeling foreign to a lot of people, present company included.

As some of you may know, years (and years and YEARS) ago, I was one of the co-hosts on the CBS Early Show. After 4 years, I was fired.

Booted to the curb.

Kicked off the island.

It was humiliating and hard. Losing such a high-profile job was tough but to add insult to injury, I had my preventive, double mastectomy scheduled just two weeks later.

To say it was a difficult time is an understatement. The days I couldn’t get out of bed were too numerous to count and my world was gray and small.

Recently, we were filming Sweet Retreats in Dallas and I made an appearance on the local, morning show, the very one I used to anchor (again, years and YEARS ago). I talked about my transformation, about being fired, even laughing about some of the things that had happened to me then.

Later that day, I received an email from a woman who had recently lost her job and was reeling. She told me that she had never seen anyone talk so openly about being fired, about their shortcomings and struggles and that it gave her hope.

I emailed her back, explaining my philosophy; I didn’t view being fired as a failure as much as it was a learning experience. It helped me see what was working and what wasn’t in my life and career, it enabled me to hit the reset button but above all, it sparked a creativity in me that I know would have remained dormant had I still had that cushy job.

In no way am I comparing my experience to that of L’Wren Scott; there could have been much more going on in her life, things we may never fully understand.

I just know that, in my own experience, things pass and, as my mother used to say, you’re not alone.

I pray for peace for the family of L’Wren Scott and for anyone dealing with the aftermath of suicide.

But if you’re reading this and thinking you’re all alone, you don’t know what the future holds or if you’re out of answers, please know, this too, shall pass. Reach out, talk to a friend, family or clergy but please understand that you are not alone in whatever it is that you’re going through.

Sorry, I didn’t mean for this post to get so heavy.. I just felt it was important to say.

May the sun shine on you and if not always, may an umbrella be nearby!

Happy Monday!