“I needed to be successful the way that I needed air; nothing was going to deny me. Telling me ‘You can’t do it’ only strengthened my resolve.” Franc D’Ambrosio 1979 – Bronx, New York: His mother was in the kitchen when 17-year-old Franc D’Ambrosio finally summoned...
“You never know what’s in a person’s heart until they are tested. Don’t give up before the miracle.” Fannie Flagg 1980 – New York City: At the height of her acting career, 36-year-old Fannie Flag left Hollywood and moved to New York City...
“I have discovered in life that there are ways of getting almost anywhere you want to go, if you really want to go.” Langston Hughes March 2006 – Pickwick Lake – Florence, Alabama: Twenty-eight-year-old Clay Dyer made his pro fishing debut...
“If God gives you something you can do, why in God’s name wouldn’t you do it?” Stephen King 1972 – Hampden, Maine: Tabitha was emptying the wastebasket when she found Stephen’s three wadded-up typewritten pages....
“Persistence is firmly sticking to something for a prolonged period of time, even as you encounter things that try to unstick you.” Peter Hollins April 1896 – Seattle, Washington: Edward Curtis, a photographer, saw the old Indian as she dug for clams on the...
“Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze you; they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.” Bernice Johnson Reagon 1893 – Midway Hotel – Kearney, Nebraska: Shortly before sunrise, hotel proprietor Orison Marden awoke to...