Your Life Awaits

No matter how old you are, Maria wants everyone to continue asking themselves, "Who am I going to be?" "That's what makes life exciting. That's what makes life a work in progress. That's what leads to an awakening," she says. "That's what leads to you actually showing up in your own life."

Although her book will teach many women many lessons, Maria wants to thank Oprah for teaching her a very important lesson. "After a family member [of mine] died, you called me up afterward and said, 'I love you,'" Maria says. "And I try to say that to people who I actually do love and who I feel have nurtured me. Mothered me. And helped me in my life because you never know when that person's going to be gone."

"You have mothered me, you have nurtured me, you have taken care of me, you have been this for me for 30 years. I love you and thank you."