Kathie Lee Gifford has been switching places pretty frequently lately, moving from her hosting seat next to Hoda Kotb on the fourth hour of “Today,” and taking a seat as the star with something to talk about. This morning, October 23, the actress, singer, songwriter, and bubbly morning sidekick was on every hour of “Today,” as a guest, sharing the news about another pursuit that has filled her days recently, penning a new children's Book, “The Gift That I Can Give.”

Kathie Lee Gifford is not in any competition with the other “Today” co-anchors. Last fall, Hoda Kotb published her first book, “I've Loved You Since Forever,” as a loving keepsake for her adopted daughter, Haley Joy, and an inspiration to other adoptive parents who might think that their opportunity to become a growing family had passed.

Just last month, Savannah Guthrie added to her “Princess” book series with “Princesses Save the World.” Gifford has nothing but love for instilling a positive dose of girl power into the social consciousness of kids, but her book aims to give both parents and children the openness to understand that each child has a unique gift for the world.

Older is not so bad

Megyn Kelly has made her larger studio space available to her morning pal and Hoda Kotb, several times, but Kathie Lee Gifford has not made a genuine guest appearance since she talked about the death of Billy Graham, shortly after Megyn Kelly joined the “Today” family.

This morning the mood was much lighter, as the ladies chatted about having children, at later ages, and understanding the terminology of “AMA” on the medical charts as “advanced maternal age.” Gifford is in the creative renaissance of her life right now and insists that being happy as “an orphan, a widow, and an empty nester” involves finding what you love, doing it as much as you can, and getting better at it.

She self-effacingly joked about how her version of looking good since turning 65 didn’t keep her from being identified as “65 and older” and relenting that Medicare had become a requirement for her, too.

“The Gift That I Can Give” didn't start out as an intentional project or Kathie Lee, but she hopes that her approach and message of not pressuring children to pursue any certain profession, for any purpose or because of lucrative opportunity, will enable children and parents to bring out the best in their children.

A different question

Kathie Lee Gifford elaborates that the question should not be “What do you want to be when you grow up?” or even “What do I want my children to be?” for parents. In contrast, her approach is one of faith, never absent from her creative vantage. She encourages that the true questions should be “What does God want you to be?” and discovering what gifts God has given uniquely to every child that only he or she can give.

She conveys that simply understanding that positive principle from an early age, enables the child to see life as a discovery of those gifts, without the pressure of societal norms.

The mother of two described how her late husband, Frank Gifford, treasured stones from a sacred spot in Israel, shortly after his passing. He saw those stones as meaningful and special for their children, Cody and Cassidy, relating how each of them would cast a personal stone into the world, based on unique gifts, and the world would be different because of them. The message in the book is the same, and Kathie Lee Gifford portrays children who love animals, children who help the elderly or ill, and children who may pass the ball at sports to help their team instead of receiving it to win.

In any capacity, finding a purpose and being a help is the greatest fulfillment in life.

Both Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb had to tease their friend, Kathie, about glitter being part of her cover, but what else could be expected from the showbiz veteran. “I think I came out of the womb with a pratfall and a rim shot,” she confessed. She detailed to Megyn Kelly that she was writing and performing her own productions since age 6, and her upcoming movie, “Then Came You” with Craig Ferguson, and music collaborator, Brett James, brought together the best of her passions in a way that only divine intervention can do.

One of the sweetest moments of the morning was seeing Kathie Lee Gifford with first graders, getting their impressions and lessons from her new effort. They got the message, and let the author know in ways only a young child can express. No one is ever too old or too young to discover the very special gift of being oneself.
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