I didn't personally know Nora Ephron, although I met her once when she addressed a group of businesswomen in that smart, funny, sure-of-herself way for which she was famous. But I thought I knew her. Maybe it's because she obviously knew us. All of us. At least those of us living in America who felt films like "Sleepless in Seattle" and "When Harry Met Sally" were about us, or about people we knew.
I am sure that whenever she was in a group, the conversation was witty, provocative, and smart. What more can you ask of life than the opportunity to be surrounded by people who have such a love for words as she did. Born to be a writer (she and her three sisters were all writers, as were their parents), she had a touch for turning a phrase both on paper and orally that was infectious.
Nora Ephron leaves behind a love of conversation, of connection through words that ended up influencing the way we think about romance, about aging, and about how much fun it can be to be a smart woman, despite the wrong marriages, the wrong makeup, the small breasts (see her 1972 column for Esquire magazine entitled "A Few Words About Breasts". It's as hilarious now as it was then. Maybe more so.).
Thank you, Nora.
Author of I is for Intercourse: The ABC's of Conversation, Susan Bird is the visionary behind Wf360, and a sought-after speaker around the world for her views on leadership, the strategic importance of conversation, entrepreneurship, and the role of women business leaders.
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