Michelle Obama Reveals Her Fear As First Lady Of Becoming A ‘Meme’ & Falling On Camera
Michelle Obama said that one of her primary goals for her eight years as the first lady was to avoid falling over and becoming a meme, according to a new story published by The Mail Online.
Speaking in London on December 3, Mrs. Obama said that the possibility of falling over at a public appearance was always on her mind.
“Of course your head is spinning because first of all, I’m trying not to fall, which is a major thing that I think about in public,” she noted.
“If you’re thinking about my thoughts when I come out on stage it’s ‘don’t fall,'” she quipped.
She then revealed that the ever-present popularity of social media led her to always focus on one thing throughout her term as first lady of the United States of America.
“One of my primary goals for the eight years was to never become a meme,” Mrs. Obama quipped during her tour to promote her new book Becoming.
The Daily Mail Online also explained that when meeting heads of state or other notable world figures, the former first lady also worried about doing something that would embarrass the country.
Obama was fearful of falling over when she first met Queen Elizabeth.
During a visit with the monarch, she might not have fallen but Mrs. Obama did cause a stir when she broke royal protocol and touched the queen, something that is never done.
The first lady had only met the queen one time prior when she joined her husband Barack Obama to exchange gifts with the royals. Then, before leaving for a function for world leaders, Mrs. Obama embraced her majesty before departing.
Mrs. Obama had curtsied to the queen earlier when she and her husband met her and the Duke of Edinburgh in the royal’s private apartments, reported the Telegraph.
Obama also touched the monarch when she met the queen to be driven to Windsor Castle.
“I was like ‘don’t trip down the stairs and don’t touch anybody, whatever you do’ and so the queen says ‘just get in, sit wherever,'” she said to Business Insider.
“And she’s [Queen Elizabeth] telling you one thing and you’re remembering protocol and she says ‘Oh it’s all rubbish, just get in,'” she continued.
“I touched her. After all those protocol lessons, I was human,” Mrs. Obama laughed.
Michelle Obama also shared some wise words for newbie royal Meghan Markle about handling the pressure of being in the public eye and pursuing projects which she’s passionate about, two things she dealt with during her time in the White House.
“My biggest advice would be to take some time and don’t be in a hurry to do anything,” she shares in her cover story for Good Housekeeping’s January issue.
Becoming is available in bookstores now.
