Michelle Obama is an inspiring figure. She is well-known as the former First Lady to her husband, Barack Obama. She pursued higher education and started her life as a lawyer, though growing up in a Black middle-class Chicago family, it was not always an easy feat.
She is a mom of daughters. She is a writer. Behind the scenes, she gives her support to her husband’s still ongoing political journey. She can take with a grain of salt a lot of hate that gets directed to her. She can keep moving forward. With that, I think Michelle is a better person for a ton of people.
Suppose you have read Michelle’s original memoir “Becoming”, which roared and rumbled the world with her powerful wisdom and, quite honestly, her extremely likable personality that shone through her writing. In that case, you know the impact that Michelle’s writing has. It’s astounding. I mean, her writing feels like she’s having a down-to-earth conversation, knitting her next blanket with a tea in her hand on her Pottery Barn sofa.
She loves to knit, though. Did you know that? Neither did I. She talks about it in her second book. More on that soon.
Michelle began first memoir of hers addressing some sentiments from the general population.
No, she will not, and never will, try to run for President.
No, she is not a man.
More than that, as a reader, you are quickly familiar with Michelle’s roots and her life story. She explains the coming-of-age story of herself in a way that explicitly demonstrates her strength and resilience. Michelle is a student at Princeton, an Ivy League where, in the 1980s, it was predominantly white male students in her pre-law classes. That’s one aspect of what makes her, her.
She narrates these events of her life and explains in great detail what it was like being the only Black girl in these giant lectures. She describes how she felt when her first roommate, a white woman from the South, wanted to switch out of their dorm room and find a new roommate.
You get my point; I encourage you to read her original memoir first. Autobiographies can be tough to get through, but again, Michelle truly has a way with words. Along the way, you will find that Michelle provides some of the most nourishing pieces of advice that got her through difficult times. Perhaps it will resonate with you too. Reading “Becoming” in May 2020 was comforting during an isolating time, especially during a chaotic Trump presidency.
Three years later, I picked up Michelle’s second novel. Her second novel titled “The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times” is merely an extension of her life story but with more about what she has been up to recently while offering additional wisdom and sentiments to her readers.
Find something that’s active, something that asks for your mind but uses your body as well. Immerse yourself in a process. And forgive yourself for temporarily ducking out of the storm.
We are a young country dominated by old narratives. Many of these stories have been lionized, repeated, and left unchallenged to the point that we hardly even recognize them as stories anymore. Instead, we’ve internalized them as truth. We forget to make the effort to decode them.
Obama, Michelle. The Light We Carry : Overcoming in Uncertain Times. 2024 ed.,When you’re breaking new generational ground in your family—the first to leave your neighborhood, the first to go to college, the first to own a house or get any sort of toehold into stability—you travel with the pride and expectations of everyone who came before you, everyone who waved you toward the mountaintop, trusting that you’ll get there even if they couldn’t.
     Crown, 2022.
Michelle’s story is unique. Her love story with Barack isn’t picture-perfect despite what you might see online or on the news. She has her doubts as a woman. She finds the current political state of the world to be very unsettling. But there are tools to help us seek shelter from the storm; this is the main message I picked up throughout her second book.
Michelle is never condescending in her writing. She came from very little and eventually rose to success, but it was not just chance. She put in so much work to get where she is now. It’s easy for others to forget, including me, that before she married Barack, she was a lawyer. She had her own established career. Dare I say she was the ultimate girl boss?! Before being Barack Obama’s wife, she was Michelle. And she was (is) awesome.
Michelle’s writing is a nice reminder that there is a voice of reason; a voice of hope that clings to a world that is not kind and, most times, incredibly cruel. Michelle serves as a reminder to keep rising above while listening to your body. Surrounding yourself with a substantial community that takes action and gathers support is important.
Moreover, she is the voice of reason for those of us with heightened anxieties about the Trump administration. The world is going through a political crisis. With that, fear and uncertainty is flooding the minds of so many of us. This book, especially in the wake of election season, cannot possibly ring more comfort in the darkest of times.