In the wisdom of Oprah and the movement to live our OWN best lives, myself along with thousands upon thousands walked ourselves to class tonight, settled in and soaked it in. Still processing my “ego work” from last night, I was ready to take notes. Here they are, as promised. I’m a “sharer” which is unsettling to some…but this kind of information only blossoms as it’s passed on. Welcome to the second day of Oprah’s Lifeclass – Letting Go of Anger. Here are my notes from Oprah:

• If you allow the past to define your present then you never actually get to live the life you were meant to live.  You are always holding on to what was and defining yourself by what was or what should have been or what could have been.
• Revenge or thinking that you deserve something more than someone else is the ego at work and when this happens, you are not living from your true self.
• Holding onto anger can set you back from living the life you were meant to live.
• Listen to your whisper inside.  And if you don’t, don’t be angry at others because you didn’t.
• Case Study – Terry McMillian and her gay ex-husband.  Everything in life is a mirror for ourselves. Look at how this example applies to your own life.  Holding on to the anger and rage that you should have let go…when you are able let this anger and rage go, everything changes. 
• Learn to release anger that is causing you harm.
• Forgiveness is giving up the hope that the past can be any different.
• Forgiving means accepting that it HAS  happened to you.  Not accepting that it was okay for it to happen. It is accepting that it HAS happened and now, what do I do about it.
• Forgiveness means giving up the hope that the past could be any different. Forgiving is giving up the hope that it could have been any other way than it actually was. 
• Anger takes up the space in your life where beauty and goodness could live.  Let it go…and let yourself be happy.  Do not let your past hold you hostage.
• It is your happiness and joy that you are sabatoging when you hang onto anger.  The other person has nothing to do with it.  It’s in your power to change.
• Sometimes you just have to do what it takes to get yourself back to happy. – Terry McMillian
• The more you hate someone, the more YOU suffer from that anger.  Anger and hate only hurt the hater.
• Live in the present moment, letting go of what has happened to you and being able to live right now with what IS happening to you.  Make a decision for right now and move forward is how we accept the power that we all have.
• Releasing anger allows beauty to come back into your life.
• Your OWN life…that is the only life you have any control of.
• You don’t forgive for the other person….you forgive for yourself.  Forgiveness is a gift you give to yourself.
• Letting go of the anger is done so that you can be free…so that you can accept the power that is within you and allow that power to move you forward if life.

After Oprah’s Lifeclass on OWN, the discussion continued with Oprah and Iyanla Vanzant.  It was wonderful…and such a gift to be able to be part of it. If you want to hear the whole thing, Oprah has given links to all of the recordings.  Here is tonight’s webcast – Letting Go of Anger.  From the powerful session, here is a lesson that Oprah says she jotted down from a previous discussion with Iyanla…and on point for tonight’s topic.

You can accept or reject the way you are treated by other people. 
But until you heal the wounds of your past, you will continue to bleed.
You can bandage the bleeding with food, with alcohol, the drugs, with work,
with cigarettes, with sex, but eventually it will ooze through and stain your life. 

You must find the strength to open the wound,
stick your hands inside, pull out the core of the painthat is holding you in your past,
the memories, and make peace with them.
                                                                                                                       – Iyanla Vanzant