“My job was to make sure that my pain was not visible to the audience. They came to escape their troubles, not to be drawn into my own pain.”

“I do not ask for a path with no trouble or regret. I ask instead for a friend who'll walk with me down any path.I do not ask never to feel pain. I ask instead for courage, even when hope can scarce shine through.And one more thing I ask:That in every hour of joy or pain, I feel the Creator close by my side. This is my truest prayer for myself and for all I love, now and forever, Amen.”

“you always have to keep things fun. if you don't, no matter how many awards you win or how much money you make, you will never be happy.”

“He's looking at me as if the whole world waits for my next breath, with an intensity that makes my heart pound and my palms sweat and then he smiles, a sweet curve of his mouth, and my breath catches, but then I freeze because there is something about it, something beyond it that I know, that makes my mind go blank with fear and pain.”

“The only handicap in life is a bad attitude.”

“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”

“it doesn't matter what the challenge is -athletics, business, romance, health, academics, the arts- the rule for getting up is the same. you just get up!”