Hillary Clinton Reflects on Becoming a Grandmother, Looks Back on Raising Chelsea

Vogue publishes excerpt from former Secretary of State's memoir Hard Choices

By Rebecca Macatee May 12, 2014 1:54 PMTags
Hillary Clinton, Hard ChoicesSimon & Schuster

Hillary Clinton's already accomplished a lot in her lifetime, but she's really looking forward to her most important role yet: Grandmother!

In the former Secretary of State's book Hard Choices (as excerpted by Vogue), Hillary gushes about how proud she is of daughter (and now mom-to-be) Chelsea Clinton. The 66-year-old politician is also the first to give credit to her own mother Dorothy Howell Rodham, who passed away in 2011, for instilling a sense of optimism and love in herself and Chelsea through the years.

Hilary's mother's childhood "was marked by trauma and abandonment," she writes. Despite being spurned by her own parents, though, Dorothy remained a positive and loving woman, ultimately passing that down to the generations to come.

"When I got old enough to understand all this, I asked my mother how she survived abuse and abandonment without becoming embittered and emotionally stunted," Hillary writes. "How did she emerge from this lonely early life as such a loving and levelheaded woman? I'll never forget how she replied. 'At critical points in my life somebody showed me kindness.'"

Dorothy helped Chelsea "navigate the unique challenges of growing up in the public eye" and served as Hillary's sounding board at home during the 2008 Democratic primaries. "Even in her 90s, Mom never lost her commitment to social justice, which did so much to mold and inspire me when I was growing up," she writes. "I loved that she was able to do the same for Chelsea."

Hillary gushes about "how proud Mom was of [Chelsea]," and then shares the message the former first lady and first daughter got from her. "Mom measured her own life by how much she was able to help us and serve others. I knew if she was still with us, she would be urging us to do the same," she writes. "Never rest on your laurels. Never quit. Never stop working to make the world a better place. That's our unfinished business."

The world is ready! Hillary's memoir Hard Choices will be released June 10.