Diabetes taught me discipline.

If your child marches to a different beat, a different drummer, you might just have to go along with that music. Help them achieve what’s important to them.

Although I grew up in very modest and challenging circumstances, I consider my life to be immeasurably rich.

I'm a New Yorker, and I jaywalk with the best of them.

I visit the island [Puerto Rico] as often as I humanly can. And I visit with community as frequently as possible, given the demands on me. I meet with kids. I meet with adults. I try to spend time and to listen to people talk about their lives.

It really takes growing up to treasure the specialness of being different. Now I understand that I've gotten to enjoy things that others have not, whether it's the laughter, the poetry of my Spanish language - I love Spanish poetry, because my grandmother loved it - our food, our music. Everything about my culture has given me enormous education and joy.

There are uses to adversity, and they don't reveal themselves until tested. Whether it's serious illness, financial hardship, or the simple constraint of parents who speak limited English, difficulty can tap unexpected strengths.