“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.”

Pretending to be a princess is fun, but it is definitely not a career.

I do know one thing about me: I don’t measure myself by others’ expectations or let others define my worth.

Remember that no one succeeds alone. Never walk alone in your future paths.

You can’t dream unless you know what the possibilities are.

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.

It really takes growing up to treasure the specialness of being different.

If I write a book where all I’ve ever experienced is success, people won’t take a positive lesson from it. In being candid, I have to own up to my own failures, both in my marriage and in my work environment.

Some people choose not to engage the battle and then don’t seek out that kind of success. And others do.

A role model in the flesh provides more than inspiration; his or her very existence is confirmation of possibilities one may have every reason to doubt, saying, “Yes, someone like me can do this.”

If the system is broken, my inclination is to fix it rather than to fight it. I have faith in the process of the law, and if it is carried out fairly, I can live with the results, whatever they may be.

I have never had to face anything that could overwhelm the native optimism and stubborn perseverance I was blessed with.

Success is its own reward, but failure is a great teacher too, and not to be feared.

I have always been actively involved in my community, belonging to organizations that promote the interests of Latinos. But I also know that the issues we confront are the same issues, in many respects, as the larger community. So what we do helps not just us but everybody.

You make your life choices understanding that you might and do have to work harder to prove yourself.

I have never, ever focused on the negative of things. I always look at the positive.

Without question, so many people, throughout my life, never think of Puerto Rico as part of the United States. Many people have no idea what the relationship is between Puerto Rico and the United States. And certainly, I have been asked if we are citizens.

True faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God’s fidelity to His Promises.

Hope is a drug that makes fear little quieter.

Though love might be gone, hope shall not be lost.

That’s the thing about hope. It hides in all the darkest places.

Here I am. I am here. Making this new day all it can be. Rejoicing in the sunrise thankful for the sunset. And hopeful that it will all happen again tomorrow.

I wish I was Sienna Miller. When I talk to her, I hope a bit of her party personality will rub off on me, but it never does.

The most incredible thing about miracles is that they happen.

Don’t become cynical. Don’t give up hope. Don’t believe that everything is judged only by expediency. There is idealism in this world. There is human brotherhood.