Oprah bliss in Toronto!

Oprah bliss was in the air at a taping of Oprah’s Lifeclass in Toronto early one morning last month.

Some 8,500 Oprah lovers sat on the edge of their seats, waiting for the masterful host, teacher and guru to begin her biggest Lifeclass ever.

Normally, having inspirational leaders Deepak Chopra, Tony Robbins, Bishop T.D. Jakes and author Iyanla Vanzant would have been enough. But while each of these masterful coaches did their 15 minutes on stage, the anticipation just grew stronger and stronger. Finally, several hours later, Oprah emerged wearing a stunning red dress and Christian Louboutin shoes (size 11, she confessed), and at that point people were giddy with excitement.

The theme was gratitude, a subject I have tackled previously in this column. But never was it given the amount of attention that it got at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre with this cast of thousands.

What was so interesting was how Oprah navigated the entire conversation – a rock concert as it were, with her dancing in the moment – gliding from celebrity guru to the audience and back to the camera with effortless ease, grace, humour and such authenticity.

Robbins asked everyone in the audience to close their eyes and think about gratitude. It was a very emotional moment when he asked everyone to think about one person they were grateful for, after another. Oprah’s eyes filled with tears as we did the exercise.

In fact, this is a marvellous routine to try yourself. Just close your eyes and think of as many things as you can in a two-minute period that you are grateful for. Oprah says she does it every night. Writing it down can be even more powerful.

But the highlight for me was when, flanked by security guards, she floated down the long aisle, while people snapped pictures on iPhones, BlackBerries and iPads, and I was able to touch her arm and, honestly, seeing her up that close was pretty thrilling. She has an energy about her that is electric. And while she is the everywoman, she is also such a dazzling superstar that the juxtaposition is quite striking.

She gave up the Oprah Show as we knew it, she joked, for more adventure at her legendary OWN network. But what we realize is that everyone just wants to see Oprah as the host, because there’s no one that rivals her.  She is in a class by herself, and she is really a star second to none.

I didn’t get to meet her personally for the sit-down dinner or TV interview I had envisioned (the dream was that I would be interviewing her), other than that fleeting moment when she came down the aisle, but she has motivated me even more to do my part to impart good thoughts, inspire others and try to live in a place of gratitude.

What can I tell you? There is so much to be grateful for. Now I have one more thing to add to the list. Seeing Oprah live and in Lifeclass was definitely a moment of bliss that I will cherish for a long time.

Judy Siblin-Librach is an Adler-trained life coach. You can reach her at her website, www.findingyourbliss.com, or on her TV show Finding Your Bliss on Rogers TV, Cable 10/63 in Toronto/Scarborough.