“I’d like to share a little secret with you,” said a sympathetic real estate agent, played by Marla Maples, in the 1998 movie “Happiness.” “Divorce was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Ms. Maples herself seems to be thriving since splitting from her ex, now the 45th president of the United States, some 20 years ago.
While raising Tiffany Trump, her daughter with President Trump, as a single mother in California, she made a vibey album with Deepak Chopra and the 14th Dalai Lama and was the host of a radio show on wellness. Most recently, she has had a recurring role as a Christian fast-food proprietor in “The Righteous Gemstones” on HBO.
Ms. Maples, who was Donald Trump’s second wife, remains diplomatic when it comes to discussing the president, declining to answer questions about the impeachment hearings, his tax returns, or his behavior in general. “It is a conscious choice,” she said.
When Ms. Maples is not playing softball in the Broadway Show League or supporting environmental and wellness causes, she lives and works out of a high-rise near Central Park, where she is developing the new spiritual travel venture, SoulShine Journeys.
The trips encourage participants to “shed what they need to shed and shift into their highest good.”
AWAKENING I really just wake up without being concerned with how I’m going to manifest. I do my morning meditation. Then I’ll start mixing all my potions in the kitchen. Celery and lemon, sometimes I’ll throw a little turmeric or ginger. I’ll try to squeeze in some yoga. I go back and forth between Iyengar and Kundalini.
WORSHIP I hop on the subway and go to Hillsong Church. The first time I walked in the door, it made me so happy. It was so enriching for my soul to see so many young people who have a connection beyond this physical world.
There are people onstage with guitars. The pastors wear jeans and boots. These are the only churches I go to. The ones that allow you to really feel the Holy Spirit by moving and singing.
I was born a Christian. And I still love connecting on that pathway. Though I am very well known to be unified with people from all religious, spiritual backgrounds, and find that harmony we all share. I studied kabbalah for many years. I just love making a pure old-fashioned connection to Christ.
OASIS I’ll walk through Times Square and then I can just jump into the park, feel the earth, hug a tree. Sometimes I’ll take a creative meeting with a friend after church. Then Carla Hughes, director of the Central Park Tennis Center, will call me.
ADVANTAGE We’ll play mixed doubles. I’m so competitive. I used to play junior tennis. So my serve is pretty good. I know how to do it, but I always want to put in more spin, I want to hit it around the edges of the court. It’s a nice little close-knit crew up there. It’s a sweet community.
Sometimes people will take pictures of me. You just kind of want to say, Maybe after the game? If someone is being a little nervy, I have to excuse myself, and say “It’s nice to meet you, I just have to run to the ladies room.”
SUNSET Honestly, I can’t wait to get home. I love to watch the sun set. Take a moment. Maybe I do some writing. Maybe I’ll shoot an inspirational video. I’m trying to learn guitar. It’s been sitting in a corner for years. I get so proud because I get it tuned perfectly, and I play a while, and then it gets ignored.
PIZZA NIGHT A family tradition since I was a kid: every Sunday night, sitting with my parents in the kitchen, watching “The Wonderful World of Disney” and eating a frozen pizza. Mom gets a break. Nobody messes up the kitchen.
To this day, I’ll get my vegan gluten-free pizza, either the Daiya or the Tofurky. I’ll make a salad with every kind of sprout you can imagine. And I’ll throw on Netflix. I love “Outlander.” I watch “Ballers.” I love Dwayne Johnson. Such a nice guy. I have a crush on him.
DATING? It hasn’t really interested me but I’ve opened the door to it. I’ve been so focused on family and building a career.
POLITICAL VIEWS I’m not in the White House. I have friends on both sides. I will just walk in the middle. I’ll do everything I can to remind people that any type of anger or judgment can truly have such a negative impact on ourselves, and absolutely on our environment.
SACRED TEXTS I have a couple of books by my bed, the Zohar, the Bible. I have a whole lot of beautiful inspirational books. I’ll say, O.K., show me what I need to learn or be inspired by tonight. I’ll pick up one, and set an intention for the week.
Bobby Klein does a reading of the I Ching. I snuggle up in the bed, and listen. I have a salt lamp by the bed that I keep really dim. I listen to his reading and it will turn off automatically. Usually I’m asleep by the time it’s over.
Sunday Routine readers can follow Marla Maples on Instagram or Twitter @itsmarlamaples.
