I did not believe what I was told about being poor and black and female in Mississippi in 1954.

I know for sure that's what we're here to do: Keep the joy thing going for all seasons.

Life whispers to you all the time...from the time you wake up in the morning and with every single experience.

What, I have actually loved it, because I've been underestimated every step of the way, and it's so exciting when you can prove them all wrong.

I have crossed over on the backs of Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Madam C. J. Walker. Because of them I can now live the dream. I am the seed of the free, and I know it. I intend to bear great fruit.

Let excellence be your brand... When you are excellent, you become unforgettable.

People never fail to amaze me. They face the unimaginable with a shot of grace and a rush of adrenaline; they steel their nerves; they summon their cool or anger or faith or whatever it takes to pull them through, and they go on to live another day.