Meryl says

STREEP. “Motherhood has a very humanizing effect.” AFP

Meryl Streep has not allowed fame and fortune to spoil her. Some of her memorable musings:

The great gift of human beings is the power of empathy.

Expensive clothes are a waste of money.

I don’t follow fashion or understand trends.

Most liberating

The most liberating thing I did early on was free myself from any concern about my looks as they pertained to my work.

Put blinders on things that conspire to hold you back, especially those in your own head.

While I am overwhelmingly proud of work that I did not do on my own, I can assure you that awards have little bearing on my personal happiness, sense of well-being, and purpose in the world.

Motherhood has a very humanizing effect. Everything gets reduced to the essentials.

We are who we’re going to be when we’re old—and when we’re very old, we are who we were when we were 8!