The First Lady and a crowd of schoolgirls
"Michelle Obama at Oxford Uni" was the glamour gig of the State visit, but I can tell you that I'm writing this sitting on the ground of a stony carpark on a laptop, covered in dust. Thats the price we media pay for a glimpse of the First Lady, and it's been a thoroughly entertaining day to boot.
You see, in truth these visits can be a bit dull - lots of important people telling us what we can and can't do. But today was all about the girls from Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in North London. Its a language college that does well against the odds. Most of the pupils are from poor ethnic backgrounds, a bit like Michelle Obama when she applied and graduated from Princeton.
That was her message today: don't be scared by the grandiose surroundings, don't think everyone here is rich, don't think you have to be wealthy to get here.
The surroundings in which she addressed the girls couldn't have been grander. The dining room at Christ Church College is what inspired the equivalent chamber at Hogwarts. Timber-vaulted ceilings, studded with gilt crests and walls heavy with portraits of sombre-looking men of centuries gone by, all alumni of course.
But the College did well today: it produced an undergraduate (and former pupil of the aforementioned school) who had the First Lady nodding ernestly as she spoke. Clarissa Pabi's message: it's important to find something you're really good at and really interested in, and then you're on your way. She's a confident, super-intelligent young woman who's already President of the Oxford Poets' Society. The University gave the girls a thorough tour, and introduced them to other 'mentor undergraduates'. Of course, it was obviously delighted to be seen to be doing something to address the 'elitist label for which it's had so much criticism.
But for me, the stand-out moment was the gorgeously cheeky pupil who asked the First Lady if she KNEW she was marrying someone who would be President! That was funny, but Michelle Obama gave a great answer. She didn't shy away, and told us how exactly why she fell for her husband.
He loved his mother, she said, and even though he was super-bright, he wasn't impressed with himself. OK, so he was cute, she continued, and, "OK, I always knew he'd be useful", but she went on to tell the young girls not to be swayed by people who have money or power, and "find someone who makes you better. A good relationship feels right. Don't waste your time in a relationship that drags you down."
I thought she was giving the (by now giggling) girls sage advice. Someone obviously felt the same as me, because they asked her what she tells her own daughters. "Read a lot", she said. "Read! Read! Read! And not the gossip papers - read well!" I feel thoroughly reprimanded and will now leave my Keith Richards autobiography for another day. Does Harry Potter count?
Lesley Ashmall is a 5 live reporter
Related links
Day 2 of the state visit
The President's speech
President Obama's official website
Comment number 1.
At 12:36 26th May 2011, carrie wrote:Its very good advice indeed, but avoiding gossip columns would leave many programmes on 5 Live devoid of content. Bring back the book reviews and do as Mrs Obama advises.
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Comment number 2.
At 13:47 26th May 2011, Pickle wrote:I would love to hear the book review back on a Thursday.
Note to Lesley - The Keith Richards autobiography is quite good, infinitely better than any of the progressively dull and boring Potter books!
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Comment number 3.
At 06:12 27th May 2011, Jenny Yu Chih Chang wrote:This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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