The comedienne lost her mother and then her brother soon after. Abandoned by her father at a young age, her mother was the one who single-handedly took care of Whoopi and her siblings.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on July 8, 2022. It has since been updated.
We all know that death is inevitable and yet accepting it is one of the most gut-wrenching things we can ever do. Trying to cope up with the loss of a parent not only leaves you emotionally broke but it also transforms you as a person. You realize that it will never be the same without them and there is in fact, nothing or nobody that can fill that void in your life. Actress and Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg could feel her life and herself change from the very moment she lost her mother.
Goldberg's father abandoned the family when she was as little as 18 months old; from there on it was her mother, Emma Johnson, who solely raised and nurtured the family. As she grew up she developed a close and intimate bond with her mother and described her as "one of the best people I've had the privilege of knowing."
Her mother passed away from a stroke in 2010. She said in an episode of Oprah’s Master Class, "There were no sad goodbyes, but for one thing. I realized a couple of days after she passed that no one would ever love me like that again. I wouldn’t put that kind of sparkle in anybody’s eye, you know?"
In her sad realization, she mentioned how her mother was her first friend and confidante. "You kind of know that person, those are your first loves. Those are the first people you tell your secrets to. Those are the people who hold you when it’s scary. That’s a big deal. So that, that I felt," quotes HuffPost.
At that time, the Ghost actress also confessed that it has been hard for her to cope with the loss and that coming to terms with the new reality is an ongoing process. "I used to talk to her every day," the comedian said backstage at AARP’s national event, according to People. "I'm still in the habit of talking to her, you know, but I just wish she were here with me."
She also recalled that her mother was the biggest source of positivity in her life. "Every day she’d say, 'I'm proud of you.' And I would respond, 'I'm proud of you.' I was very lucky to have her as a mother." She couldn't help but confess, "I'm a different person today than I was the day before she died."
However, she did admit that the sole consolation in an otherwise tragic incident was knowing the fact that her mother had a full life and there is nothing worth telling that she had not told her. "I know she had a great life so I can’t be too sad. She had a great time with it. But of course, I’m sad because I really miss her. We didn’t leave anything unsaid."
During these trying times, it was her brother Clyde who she fell back on for support and care. She said on The View that she co-hosts, as quoted by E! Online, "I think I'm just sad sometimes that I think, 'Who will love me the way that she did?' But I realize that my brother and I have each other and so we're OK."
But in a cruel turn of events, destiny snatched another support from her life. She lost her brother a few years after her mother. She said on an installment of Loose Woman, as reported by the Daily Mail, "That's the thing about people when they pass away, you don't realise just how much you depended on them. But they raised you to be independent so she prepared me for this time."
After all, there are some wounds that time can't heal.
References:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/whoopi-goldberg_n_5413335
https://www.eonline.com/news/199117/whoopi-goldberg-mourns-her-mom
https://people.com/celebrity/whoopi-goldberg-still-processing-mothers-death/
