In my version of paradise, the air was always cold and the rivers ran with candy.

I'm not afraid of IED's, bullets, mortars.

Contemplating Christmas when you are isolated and far from home brings its own unique pain.

I think it's the human spirit inside of all of us that has an enormous capacity to survive.

I, too, was carrying around my own fate. All the things I couldn't know sat somewhere inside, embroidered into me-maybe not quite fixed to the point of inevitability but waiting, in any event, for a chance to unspool.

Maintaining my dignity is so important for me.

After being in captivity for so long, I can't begin to describe how wonderful it feels to be home in Canada.