by Marilyn De Angelis Pennell

Created on: February 14, 2009   Last Updated: March 02, 2009

She has it all. Wealth, fame, a fulfilling career, a terrific best best friend in Gayle King and a loving partner in Stedman Graham. Oprah Winfrey seems to lead a charmed life. It is a life that many of us admire and even envy. So, if there is anything missing from what appears to be Oprah Winfrey's very blessed existence, what is it?

Oprah is a Mother to Us All

Could it be that the only blessing that Oprah seems to be missing in her life is that of a child, whether biological or adopted, to call her own? Perhaps. Yet, despite the fact that she is not a mother in the typical sense of the word, Oprah Winfrey knows quite well how to mother. In fact, Oprah is a mother to us all.

If the definition of mother means to love, cherish, inspire, teach and empathize, then Oprah is as much a mother as the California woman who just gave birth to eight babies with six more at home. Maybe even more so. Each and every day Oprah wraps us all in a televised collective embrace, soothing our fears, helping to heal our traumas, holding our hands, wiping away our tears and telling us it will all be OK.

Oprah's Words About Mothers and Mothering

Oprah may not be a typical mom with a family of her own at home, but by no means should that fact lead us to believe that that Oprah doesn't appreciate and understand mothers or mothering. In fact, in a recent Mother's Day issue of "O magazine", she wrote these powerful words in support of mothers everywhere,

"I'm in awe of good mothers-those heroines all around me who sacrifice daily out of love for their children. In our society, we give motherhood plenty of lip service. We pat moms on the head, bring them flowers on Mother's Day, and honor them before crowds. But at the end of the day, we don't extend them the same respect we would a professor, a dentist."

Oprah also wrote "the choice to become a mother is the choice to become one of the greatest spiritual teachers there is."
So, why did Oprah Winfrey, a great spiritual teacher herself, make the decision not to bear children? Such a personal choice is not ours to question. But, in the same Mother's Day edition of her magazine, Oprah offered a little more insight into how she views and values motherhood.

Oprah Says that Mothers are Not "Just Moms'"

"Whether we decide to work full-time while raising children, stay home with our kids, or bear no children at all, we need to understand that any put-down of the decision to mother is a threat to women's choices everywhere. We should no longer allow a mother

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