To make a difference is not a matter of accident...People CHOOSE to make a difference.

The idea is to write it so that people hear it and it slides through the brain and goes straight to the heart.

The question is not how to survive, but how to thrive with passion, compassion, humor and style.

If I insist on being pessimistic, there is always tomorrow. Today I am blessed.

When my grandmother died, I realized that even if I had millions of dollars, I couldn't find her anywhere on earth. My next thought was that I would die. I looked at my life and thought, "I'm afraid to die." I concluded that whether I was afraid or not, I would die. It was one of the most important crossroads in my life, once I realized that no matter what, I would do this thing, the next step was to think, "If I am going to do the most difficult and frightening thing - dying - is it possible that I could do some difficult and impossible things that are good?"

Let us live so we do not regret years of inertia and ignorance, so when we die we can say all of our energy was dedicated to the noble liberation of the human mind and spirit, beginning with my own.

I learned a long time ago the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side, be an advocate for myself and others like me.