We learned about gratitude and humility - that so many people had a hand in our success from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who kept our school clean... and we were taught to value everyone's contribution and treat everyone with respect.
To play June I had an immediate connect with her background and culture. We grew up with the same religion and shared a lot of the same values of family and spirituality. But I was really so inspired by what a modern woman she was.
9/11 was a deliberate carefully planned evil act of the long-waged war on the West by Koran-inspired soldiers of Allah around the world. They hated us before George W. Bush was in office. They hated us before Israel existed. And the avengers of the religion of perpetual outrage will keep hating us.
I know the Bible is inspired because it inspires me.
Sometimes you can forget about who you are in a relationship. But you can also be inspired by the person you are with to become something you always knew you wanted to become.
So I developed very early a massive inferiority complex and I've told the story often about how that inspired me later in life to get involved in other things because I couldn't out-do my brothers in sports and it's a very competitive relationship.
In terms of individuals who actually inspired me very few of the academic people that I had access to had that power over me. Maybe it's simply because I wasn't that committed to geometry.
If you look just at the decades after 1934 you know it's hard to point to really inspired and positive support from outside of Haiti to Haiti and much easier to point to either small-minded or downright mean-spirited policies.
To have the chance to see your music be elevated and to have almost universally positive response to that music makes me feel better every day. I feel more confident and inspired and that's fun.
Each season I find myself constantly inspired by 'The Biggest Loser' contestants. Their tenacity and willingness to learn new healthy habits is tremendous and the results speak for themselves. I am honored to be part of such an inspiring program that helps inspire positive change in so many lives.