Wynonna Judd Realized She’s Now the Judd Family Matriarch in a Panicked Holiday Moment
After her mother’s tragic death, country music icon Wynonna Judd revealed she had a realization that she is the Judd family matriarch in a panicked holiday moment.
Wynonna confessed she was left with lingering questions after Naomi Judd died. Still, she was trying to be “all things to all people” for Thanksgiving when the revelation about her new role sent her “into panic” about the ripple effects of losing her mom.
Wynonna Judd panicked when she realized she’s the family matriarch on her Thanksgiving
While speaking to grief expert David Kessler about the first Judd Thanksgiving without Naomi, Wynonna opened up about the ups and downs of making the most of the holiday.
Wynonna started preparing a week in advance because she cooked for 40 people, hand-picked mainly by her. But she didn’t host the celebration on the national holiday because she took that day to cry. “Thanksgiving day sucked,” she confessed.
Despite the schedule change, she knew preparing the big holiday meal would be physically and emotionally demanding. So, she woke up that chosen morning and talked herself through deep breathing and creating peace. “Of course, that lasted for all of 38 minutes, and then I went into panic,” she admitted.
“I realized something,” she declared, “and that is that I am now the matriarch.”
“I think the pressure of that alone was like, ‘Oh my gosh, my mom isn’t here this year. And I made her favorite foods, and I did it really well,'” Naomi’s defensive daughter shared.
Wynonna Judd reminded herself the holiday was her experience, too
Wynonna said she took the time to feel what she was feeling and “numbed out” around the time the sun went down until the Thanksgiving festivities began. Then she told herself, “OK, you’re gonna have to stop this because this is your holiday as well.”
“I think we forget that it’s our experience as well as being the hostess with the mostess,” she added. “I want to bang everyone on the head and make their dreams come true for the night.”
Wynonna said things got a little awkward when stepdad Larry Strickland showed up. “My mom’s husband brought a ‘friend,'” she shared, adding she got “twisted” after that. But she took a “timeout” for some “me time” to get back in the holiday game.
On a related note, in the months after Naomi’s death, rumors swirled that Wynonna was upset and fighting with her family, including Strickland and her sister Ashley Judd, over their mom’s will and estate.
But she previously cleared the air on her relationship with Ashley, sharing that the tragedy brought them closer despite their many differences. She also said neither had any reason to be fighting with anyone over the will.
Police released files on Naomi Judd’s death investigation
News of Naomi Judd’s death shocked the world of country music, especially once the family revealed she’d died by suicide. And Wynonna confessed to Kessler that she went through scrapbooks around the holiday and felt frustrated toward her mother for not still being with the family.
The Judds reunited on the stage of the CMT Music Awards weeks before the tragedy. The duo was set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame the day after Naomi died, and they had also planned a final tour together.
Police released files on the investigation, which revealed how a handwritten message on a sticky note indicated to investigators that the death was a case of suicide (The Tennesseean). Notably, Naomi had been open about her experience living with depression and mental illness, penning a memoir about it called River of Time: My Descent into Depression and How I Emerged with Hope.
How to get help: In the U.S., call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988 or 1-800-273-8255. Or text HOME to 741-741 to speak with a trained crisis counselor at the free Crisis Text Line.
