Taraji P. Henson wants to slow down and enjoy life. The Color Purple actress gets candid about her plans for the future and what she wants to do with her life and her platform.
Henson, 53, recently sat down a profile interview with Elle magazineand the rich alum revealed that she is, in a way, actively looking forward to retirement.
“Well, not completely retired,” Henson explained. “I’ll always work. I’m talking about the grind — [the] feeling like I should take an acting job.”
“I really want to start enjoying the fruits of my labor more and be in a position where I can rent a yacht and call my family and say, ‘Meet me in Spain,’” Henson added.
Although Henson has achieved a lot of success through her work and can indeed enjoy the said fruits, that does not mean that the actress does not like to keep her feet on the ground and also live a normal life.
“I love browsing the aisles of Target and Walmart. Can I afford to have someone go before me? Absolutely. But then I distance myself from the people I have to play in real life,” Henson said. “How does that help me in my job, if I’m never around people? I’m not going to subject myself to isolation because of what I do.”
“I’m a Virgo. I prefer to do it myself,” she said.
But now that she’s had the success she enjoyed, she can also pursue philanthropic endeavors that are close to her heart. A special venture that she has worked hard on is the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundationnamed after her late father.
The foundation explains its mission as one of “embracing ancestral roots, celebrating cultural heritage, cultivating self-love, prioritizing self-care, fostering community connections, embracing creative expression, promoting mental health education , promoting open dialogue and strengthening each other.”
One of its main goals is to increase awareness of mental health and destigmatize the topic, especially in Black communities.
“Acting put me on a platform and I always thought I could touch lives through acting, but this foundation actually saves lives,” Henson told the publication. “I am grateful that acting has led me to a greater purpose in life.”
Henson has been very open about her own mental health journey in the past and has created a talk show series, Peace of Mind with Taraji P. Henson, to share her struggles with other celebrities and friends.
“[I’m] much better…’ Henson told ET’s Kevin Frazier in October 2021, opening up about her own struggles with ‘suicidal thoughts’.
“It’s not like you actually go through with it, it’s just thoughts that go through your head when you’re at your lowest level,” Henson explained. “And for me, because I’m in therapy, I knew saying it out loud and getting it out of my head would numb it.”
In February 2021, Henson admitted relate to Tamar Braxton’s suicidal thoughtspreviously told ET: “Every day is a struggle. I found myself struggling with not knowing or just giving up. Sometimes it just gets to be too much and that’s why the show is so important. Because when you see me, [hear] When someone says that, you don’t feel alone.”
“You are ashamed of those thoughts, and why?” she added at the time. “Why should you be ashamed? That’s a real thought you’re having in real time. Don’t shy away from it. It’s real. Deal with it.”
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