My father had to go to work, I used to think he was a jerk. I didn't know his heart was broken, and not another word was spoken.

I wouldn't live in Chicago cause it's too conservative, aside for the fact that Oprah Winfrey lives there.

We live in a very scary time. Or should I say we don't live at all.

I know the aspect of my personality, being the vixen, the heartbreaker and the incredibly provocative girl is a very marketable image, but it's not insincere. You just can't take it seriously.

Everyone has a self-destructive nature in them. It's whether you feed it or not. You don't have to be a pop star to feel connected to destruction or self-destruction. But self-destruction is self-obsession, and self-obsession is not really possible if you're engaged in raising children. And if you have a spiritual life, you're constantly being asked to see yourself as one small fragment in the bigger picture.

To me, the most important thing - aside from meeting people's physical needs, whether that's education, health care, clothing, food, a roof over their heads - is changing the mind-set and educating people. And most of all, most important, is empowering people and making them self-sustaining.

To be brave is to love someone unconditionally, without expecting anything in return. To just give. That takes courage, because we don't want to fall on our faces or leave ourselves open to hurt.