THE VERY FIRST TIME that I laid eyes on Wes Moore, he was sitting in a Four Seasons Hotel ballroom getting his “man makeup” done for our STYLE photo shoot. Somehow, he sneaked in while I was prepping outside. And in my surprise to see him, I emitted what can only be described as a squeal of teenage “fan club” delight.
As a man who clearly loves the hell out of people, Wes’ natural response was to hop out of his chair and run over to hug me. (Adorable visual: He still had the tissue tucked into the collar of his gingham shirt.) I, on the other hand, was a hot mess. After being down with the flu for two weeks, I had just gotten back my voice—and I was missing at least half of my false eyelashes… all on the left side.
“I bet Oprah had all her eyelashes when she interviewed you,” I joked with Wes.
(Winfrey plans to make a movie out of his memoir, “The Other Wes Moore.”) And while I was reading his latest, “The Work,” at a local coffee shop, a hipster grad student and two 60-something gals in track suits came over to comment, “Oh, I looove him.”
On a day when I felt like 70 percent of my best self, I swear, Wes Moore looked into my eyes and saw the missing 30 percent. At one point, I shared something personal (about losing my dad) and he just tapped my hand twice, in this simple but moving gesture that said “I get you” or “I’ve got your back.”
When I left that day, I wasn’t focused on Wes’ stratospheric exceptionalism—that thing that makes you hear Salt-N-Pepa (“What a mighty good man”) as he walks away. Instead, I was fired up to find even greater purpose and passion in my life—which is Wes’ whole mission in writing“The Work” (run out and pick up a copy).
I hope you enjoy this Men’s Issue, which takes a heartfelt and playful look at real-life “guy” dilemmas. Manscaping, anyone? Plus, don’t miss our fun package on getting hitched (page 96). And, on a serious note, one must-read is “Mood Madness” (page 92), which tackles the controversial topic of anti-depressant use in modern women.
