Melinda French Gates admits she 'prayed for grace' before speaking publicly about her divorce: 'To say the right things'
Melinda French Gates has reflected on opening up publicly about her highly-publicised divorce from former Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates.
Speaking to Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King as part of her series Moments That Make Us, Melinda, 59, admitted that before speaking candidly about her split, she "prayed for grace" during that time.
She previously spoke to King about her split for CBS Mornings.Melinda also admitted during her series episode this week that she relied heavily on her three closest friends through her trying times.
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Melinda French Gates 'prayed for grace' before speaking publicly about her divorce from Bill Gates. Melinda French Gates /Moments That Make Us/YouTube
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"I prayed for grace, Gayle, before that interview, grace to say the right things and not the wrong things. The grace to stand in my truth, but also not do complete damage," Melinda said.
During another part of the chat this week, she said: "I would not have gotten through my divorce without my three closest friends. There's no chance."
"They had seen enough over the years and they knew some problems along the way... they had seen me sad or.... you actually need a friend who will tell you the truth even when you don't want to hear it," she said.
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The former couple finalised their divorce in 2021. AP
During her previous chat with CBS Mornings, Melinda said her trust was "broken" during her marriage. Bill had an affair with a Microsoft staffer in 2000, confirmed by his representative.
"It wasn't one moment or one specific thing that happened. There just came a point in time where there was enough there that I realised it just wasn't healthy, and I couldn't trust what we had," she said.
"I feel like I'm starting to get to the other side. And I do feel like I'm turning a page in the chapter now," she added at the time.
The former couple finalised their divorce in 2021.
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