PRINT
Madeleine Albright's Pin Collection
Former secretary of state Madeleine Albright wore pins to convey how she felt without saying a word. "The first President Bush had been known for saying 'Read my lips,'" she says. "I began urging colleagues to 'Read my pins.'"
Original Content  |  October 09, 2009
Madeleine Albright's eagle pin
The Eagle Pin

Albright decided to wear this pin showing a gold eagle with widespread wings for her swearing-in ceremony—but later would come to regret it!

"What I failed to notice was that the clasp was not only old but complicated: Fastening it was a multistep process that I neglected to complete. All went well until I had one hand on the Bible and the other in the air.

"Then, I looked down and saw that my beautiful pin was dangling sideways. With all the commotion, I had no time to fix the problem until after the photographers had done their work, showing me standing next to the president with an eagle that had forgotten how to fly."
Printed from Oprah.com on Thursday, May 23, 2013
© 2013 OWN, LLC. All Rights Reserved