One of my most treasured interviews took place the year I got divorced.
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s memoir Madam Secretary pubbed about that time, and book tour brought her to my radio station studio.
I held my mic to her chin, then mine, as I asked and she answered. Albright told her evocative story of growing up in Czechoslovakia and escaping war, three times moving to new countries. Eventually, her family ended up in Denver. Despite all the relocations, Albright spoke American English flawlessly.
What got to me was, yes, her story and her tenacity against tough odds. Mostly, I heard her power as a woman. Albright told me how often she’d been in rooms with mostly men, having to speak loudly and even interrupt to get her words heard. She wanted women younger than she to comprehend how vital this was to ourselves and to our nation.
I felt lucky that I signaled my power by wielding a microphone. Like a magic wand, I could make my questions heard. What I didn’t see, was that my answers carried value, too.
After our interview, I thanked Madam Albright and walked her back to the lobby. She sat, awaiting her two staff members, who buzzed around, borrowing an office phone and a xerox machine. I stepped away, thinking the staffers would be back for her soon.
But they weren’t. I walked back through the lobby, seeing the former Secretary of State sitting alone. I chose to sit next to her, not knowing what to say. Suddenly, I found myself asking her what it was like being divorced. I revealed briefly my new status and said, “I still sleep in the same small section of the bed I always did.”
Without skipping a beat, she replied, “I’ve been divorced about twenty years, and I still do, too.”
Madeleine Albright passed away March 23,2022, She left an indelible mark on my life and was a pioneer for women in politics.