10 Things We Learned From Michelle Obama & Meryl Streep in More Magazine
Meryl Streep and First Lady Michelle Obama in More’s July/August issue. Photography by ©David Slijper/MORE Magazine
First Lady, fitness guru, dance mom, and now magazine editor? ’Tis true! Michelle Obama can add another feather in her cap, as it was revealed today that she is the guest editor of More’s July/August issue. Among the top features, which include health-changing tips, “37 Ways to Live a Meaningful Life,” and “How to Wear the New White Shirt,” is a tete-a-tete with none other than pal Meryl Streep. Wearing a two-tone Tanya Taylor dress, she sits down with the Oscar-winning actress at the White House for an intimate chat about mentorship, motherhood, their personal legacies, and collective man crush. Here are 10 interesting tidbits from the story.
1. Their Mothers Are Their Mentors.
Meryl Streep: My mentor was my mother. She had no list of accomplishments behind her name, no awards or blah, blah, blah. My mother walked into a room and lit it up, and people were sad when she left. That, to me, is what really matters: who you touch and how.
Michelle Obama: If I point to anything that makes me who I am, it’s that I have a whole lot of common sense. I’ve got a good mind and a good ability to read people and situations. A lot of that is because that’s who my mother is.
2. Meryl Streep Considers Herself a Wallflower.
MS: I’m much more inclined to want to not say anything in public. When I have to be in the spotlight, I think to myself, [my mother] Mary [Streep] could do it. It’s a good thing, to imagine yourself doing something you think you can’t. I do that every day, because basically, if I had my way, I’d just stay home and think about what I’m having for supper.
3. Michelle Obama Lets Her Daughters Know That She Knows What’s Up.
MO: I try to remind them that I actually do know the answers and that I don’t want them getting their best advice from another 14-year-old. I never sit down and lecture them about self-confidence.
First Lady Michelle Obama and Meryl Street at the White House in More’s July/August issue. Photography by ©David Slijper/MORE Magazine
4. Art Imitates Life for the Actress.
MS: I don’t think about my work as time away. I think of it as integrated into my whole life. But my work is different from other people’s jobs: I’m portraying people, their concerns, their humanity, and I pull on my life at home for that. My girls recognize me in, say, my portrait of Margaret Thatcher.
5. They Both Kind of Crush on Sting.
MS: What you’re saying reminded me of something Sting once told me. [She pauses, smiles.] Look at me dropping names!
MO: And [I’ll bet he] was cute when he said it!
6. Mobama Isn’t Afraid to Dole Out a Hug to a Stranger.
MO: I want to feel like the things I did made a difference. That’s one of the reasons I spend time [greeting people] on rope lines, because I’m always thinking, Maybe this interaction, particularly if I’m meeting kids, will change someone’s life. Maybe if I stay one second longer and ask this little girl what she wants to be, if I tell her that I’m proud of her, if I give her a hug, maybe that one moment will make her go off and be great. That’s how I think about the work I do [as First Lady]. It is a rare spotlight. I want to make sure I don’t waste it.
7. As Established As She Is, Meryl Streep Still Experiences Sexism.
MS: Do I in Hollywood? [Laughs.] Did you hear Patricia Arquette’s Oscar speech [about the need to address wage disparity between male and female workers]? She wasn’t talking off the top of her head. It’s absolutely true.
First Lady Michelle Obama on the cover of More’s July/August issue. Photography by ©David Slijper/MORE Magazine
8. FLOTUS Likens Motherhood to Being a Captain of a Ship.
One child can confuse you into thinking you’re a good parent, that you had something to do with [who they are]. And then you have the second and you think, What happened to this one? This one is totally different. And you realize all you’re doing is guiding. You’re just slightly steering the boat. They come [into the world] with so much of who they are already in place. It’s easy to step in and push them hard in a [certain] direction. I have to fight that. It’s better to give them space and support.
10. Meryl Streep Wants You to Think About Where Your Stuff Comes From.
MS: Be a mindful shopper. Think about the impact your purchases make: Is what I buy good for the environment? Where is it made? How are the people who are making it treated? Those things make a difference.
Read the full article in More’s July/August 2015 issue—on newsstands June 23!
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