For 10 years, Michelle Obama sat back and watched lovers, haters, and pundits attempt to illustrate her story. Can you imagine how tough that must have been? To see false narratives fly so freely about her character, family, and leadership for a whole decade is a thought that’s almost unfathomable. She clearly did not attend the Cardi B School of Patience.
Finally, a little over a year since departing the White House, Obama, 54, will get to tell her story in her words in her new memoir, “Becoming.”
The title could not be more fitting and predictive of a great read all about her transition from First Lady to her reentry into the chaotic society we have today.
I’ve always wondered what she would make of her post-political life. Back in 2016, the political left, still misty-eyed about the departure of our favorite First Family, wished she would extend the Obama reign by running for President. And though she had hit the trail to pitch for Hillary Clinton, she was adamant that running for office wouldn’t be her thing.
Now, it seems like she wants to be a vessel for women who feel buried under titles and stats — and she wants to drive home the message that none of these bullet points account for who you really are.
In a post plugging the book set for release on November 13, 2018, Obama laid it out plainly:
“I’m from the South Side of Chicago. I went to Princeton and Harvard. I’m a wife, a mother, a daughter, and a sister. I’ve been a lawyer, a nonprofit leader, a hospital executive, and First Lady of the United States,” she wrote. “I like to call these my ‘stats’ – the shorthand we all seem to default to whenever we tell our stories.”
The book, she promises, will chime in on all the little nuances of her life.
“As I’ve written my memoir, BECOMING, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about my story, mining it for the kinds of details I’d usually just brush off or even forget about—the narrow taillights of my father’s car, a talk with my mother on a drive home, the heat of my daughter’s forehead when she ran a fever,” she explained. “And in doing so, I’ve realized that those surface-level ‘stats’ don’t really tell my story at all.”
I’ve never heard a statement more telling about our achievement-driven culture. We’re all on this invisible hamster wheel to add more stats, more money, more credibility and more visibility to who we are, but at what cost? Chasing the titles actually strips away the precious details of who we are.
While it’s important to know how to sum up your career journey, we should not do so and jeopardize your essence.
Obama will further explain the point during a multi-city tour. Check out the full dates below and visit BecomingMichelleObama.com for more information.
Tuesday, Nov. 13: Chicago, Ill., at the United Center
Thursday, Nov. 15: Los Angeles, Calif., at the Forum
Saturday, Nov. 17: Washington, DC, at the Capital One Arena
Saturday, Nov. 24: Boston, Mass., at TD Garden
Thursday, Nov. 29: Philadelphia, Penn., at Wells Fargo Center
Saturday, Dec. 1: Brooklyn, NY, at Barclays Center
Tuesday, Dec. 11: Detroit, Mich., at Little Caesar’s Arena
Thursday, Dec. 13: Denver, Colo., at Pepsi Center Arena
Friday, Dec. 14: San Jose, Calif., at SAP Center
Monday, Dec. 17: Dallas, TX., at American Airlines Center
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