Tia Mowry Celebrates How Sheryl Lee Ralph’s Words ‘Inspired’ Her: ‘Her Spirit Truly Shines Through’

Sheryl Lee Ralph has longtime fan Tia Mowry!

Mowry, 45, shared a touching post in honor of her ex Instant mom costar on Instagram on Friday, in which she detailed how Ralph, 67, continued to inspire her nearly 9 years after their sitcom Nick at Nite ended.

In the video he shared, Mowry gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at her morning routine, all while listening to Ralph’s memorable speech at the 2023 Critics Choice Awards.

Tia Mowry and Sheryl Lee Ralph at the 8th Annual ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon.

Amy Graves/WireImage

“Had the honor of working with @thesheryllearalph where she played my mom on the show, Instant momand her spirit truly shines through every moment you’re with her,” Mowry wrote in the caption. “Her words really inspired me, especially as I was learning to prioritize my self-image over others’ opinions of me.”

“At the end of the day, I’ve learned that I have to make peace with myself, and that may involve setting boundaries that other people may not appreciate,” she added. “But as long as I can see my growth and be proud of the person I’m becoming, that’s all that matters 💕.”

Tia Mowry on whether her kids will follow in her footsteps: ‘I don’t see it happening’

The speech Mowry chose for her Instagram clip was taken from the January 2023 awards show, where Ralph won Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Barbara Howard in Abbott Elementary School.

During a heartfelt moment after Ralph saluted the late Sidney Poitier, she left viewers with a powerful message that seems to still resonate with Mowry more than a year later: “To all of you watching, come closer to the screen and listen,” she said. “People don’t have to like you, people don’t have to love you, people don’t even have to respect you. But when you look in the mirror, you better love what you see!”

Mowry and Ralph’s Instant mom ran for three seasons on Nickelodeon’s NickMom block and later on TV Land from 2013 to 2015.

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Sheryl Lee Ralph and Tia Mowry attend the NickMom panel discussion at the Viacom Building in 2013.

Laura Cavanaugh/FilmMagic

Mowry is a single mother and shares son Cree, 12, and daughter Cairo, 5, with ex-husband Cory Hardrict. Earlier this month, she updated fans on a “healing” family trip to Thailand where she enjoyed a “moment of peace, healing and growth” with her two children.

“I feel like I’ve learned so much about who I am and who I want to be,” Mowry wrote at the time. “As women, we’re taught to be selfless, but I’ve been debunking this concept and realizing that we’ll never truly feel whole if we want to be less than ourselves.”

“Despite the challenges of the past few years, I am immensely grateful to my support system, my community, my people for standing by me,” she added. “They have played a huge role in my journey. To my entire community, thank you – I love you so much!”

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Source: HIS Education