We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.

There's a lot of talk these days about giving children self-esteem. It's not something you can give; it's something they have to build. Coach Graham worked in a no-coddling zone. Self-esteem? He knew there was really only one way to teach kids how to develop it: You give them something they can't do, they work hard until they find they can do it, and you just keep repeating the process.

If I was able to tell my story with the passion I felt, my lecture might help others find a path to fulfilling their own dreams.

The person who failed often knows how to avoid future failures. The person who knows only success can be more oblivious to all the pitfalls.

I have never thought of writing as hard work, but I have worked hard to find a voice.

Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I'm dying and I'm having fun. And I'm going to keep having fun every day because there's no other way to play it.

Go out and do for others what somebody did for you.