Most importantly, I realize the value of the other people - the extended family - the other people within my community, my cultures: my teachers and the other people I call Auntie, Uncle, Godfather, Godbrother, whatever. These are people who pulled you in and made you part of their lives and their homes.

It's not attractive to be talking down about yourself all the time. All you continue to do to yourself is pull yourself further down into a deeper place of depression and sadness and insecurity and fear and hopelessness, so it's like, having God in your life is important, accepting who you are is important, regardless of what you look like.

It's always a wonderful experience to keep working.

You can change your body shape by permitting yourself to exercise and eat a healthy diet and so on - and we've heard miraculous stories of people who have lost hundreds of pounds, and they look like a completely different person - but that's not the norm for the average person, and a lot of times, people don't get that way in a healthy way.