Forgiveness works two ways, in most instances. People have to forgive themselves too. The powerful have to forgive themselves for their behavior. That should be a sacred process.

I wanted to explore the values that are at work, underpinning my life.

I was the only Black person on the set. It was unusual for me to be in a circumstance in which every move I made was tantamount to representation of 18 million people.

A good deed here, a good deed there, a good thought here, a good comment there, all added up to my career in one way or another.

Child psychologists have demonstrated that our minds are actually constructed by these thousands of tiny interactions during the first few years of life. We aren't just what we're taught. It's what we experience during those early years - a smile here, a jarring sound there - that creates the pathways and connections of the brain. We put our kids to fifteen years of quick-cut advertising, passive television watching, and sadistic video games, and we expect to see emerge a new generation of calm, compassionate, and engaged human beings?

I had to satisfy the action fans, the romantic fans, the intellectual fans. It was a terrific burden.

If I'm remembered for having done a few good things and if my presence here has sparked some good energies, that's plenty.