The prolific mogul ushers in a milestone birthday on Monday, but reveals she decided to just sit, reflect and savor the moment.
While Oprah Winfrey is known for her penchant for throwing extravagant celebrations, the media mogul is taking a different approach when it comes to her 70th birthday.
A rep for the former daytime talk show host tells ET that Winfrey will not be hosting any big parties to celebrate her milestone birthday, a decision that she delves into further in an essay shared on Oprah Daily Monday.
"I had such pressure from all my friends to do something big, something special; to have a dinner, a party or luncheon -- or to go somewhere like a spa, a hike, a resort, or to meditate in Nepal," Winfrey admits in the essay. "I thought about it all, took in all their suggestions, and finally did what one friend, Wintley, recommended. He said, 'You're too blessed to stress. Savor the fragrances of your extraordinary life.' It reminded me of the last line of 'Love After Love,' one of my favorite poems by Derek Walcott: 'Sit. Feast on your life.'"
"So that’s what I've been doing -- going through old journals, photos, memory boxes, feasting, savoring, and marveling at the discovery, pain, joy, and wonder of 70 years of growing into the woman I am," she adds.
The Color Purple producer shares her mindset as she ushers in a new year, telling readers that she is reflecting on the "poignancy of time passing."
She writes, "What I celebrate this birthday (and beyond) is knowing that the person I know myself to be and the work that has come straight from being has mattered. At my age, you recognize the poignancy of time passing. Seventy resonates, letting you know for sure that there are not as many years remaining as you've already consumed. I take great satisfaction in accepting that regardless of how many more suns are left -- the rising each time has been worth it."
Winfrey even took to social media to show her followers how chill she's keeping the kay, sharing a video to Instagram that shows her running alongside her dog and trainer.
"Celebrating 70 with a run on the beach. #healthisthebestgift. Thank you for all the birthday love," she captioned the post.
While Winfrey isn't looking to raise a lot of fanfare on her special day, others are more than happy to celebrate her loudly and proudly.
Sherri Shepherd took the time to give Winfrey a shout-out on Monday's episode of her eponymous talk show, sharing love for her mentor on her birthday.
"I got to tell you, at 70, Oprah is looking the best that she has ever looked," Shepherd told her audience. "This is a woman that is living her best life all right! Oprah recently said that she is not slowing down at 70; she said, 'I will never be done until my last breath is done.' You better go! It's just getting better for Oprah."
Shepherd has previously shared that Winfrey reached out and offered her a wealth of wisdom before she debuted her talk show, preaching important lessons on maintaining a positive energy with her audience and not being too focused on the show's numbers. She reflects on their relationship during her birthday shout-out, telling her audience that she "still can't get over" having the mogul's "stamp of approval."
"We over here, the entire cast and crew, we still in an Oprah High," Shepherd adds before signing off with a happy birthday message to Winfrey.
Danielle Brooks also paid tribute to her predecessor, posting an Instagram video of her with Winfrey on the Color Purple set, in which she reprised her portrayal of Sofia, which she originally played on Broadway during the 2015 revival production. Her portrayal is currently in the running for an Academy Awards.
"Happy 70th birthday @oprah 🤸♂️🎊🥂Love ya like a fat kid loves cake or even better, love ya like you love bread," Brooks captioned the post. "Sending you so much love. ❤️ 💜❤️"
When ET spoke with Winfrey at the star-studded premiere of The Color Purple at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles in December, she reflected on her time as Sofia in the 1985 epic -- which also earned her an Academy Award nomination -- and passing on the role to Brooks.
"I believe that there's something really divine about The Color Purple. I believe that there's something special that, whenever Alice Walker wrote this in 1982 when it was first released, it put something into the world that was deeply meaningful, powerful, resilient, hopeful, and I think that that message of forgiveness and joy is always needed," she noted.
"[Sofia] had the power back in the 1920s. Not many women had that or had the agency, as we now refer to, to be able to do that for themselves, but I loved playing that character," Winfrey added. "Playing that character changed me, and one of the great joys for me was to be on set watching Danielle Brooks take it on and make it her own. So, you know, when you get to be where I am, a woman of a certain age, one of the great, deep joys of your life is the satisfaction of being able to pass it on to someone else."
Happy birthday, Oprah!
RELATED CONTENT:
