"Reclaiming the word 'fat' was the most empowering step in my progress. I stopped using it for insult or degradation and instead replaced it with truth, because the truth is that I am fat, and that's ok. So now when someone calls me fat, I agree, whereas before I would get embarrassed and emotional."

"I don't feel famous and I didn't want my autobiography to be like a Paris Hilton story."

"Thanks to capitalism, the importance placed on beauty has never been so manipulated. We are the guinea pigs force-fed ads that tell us how pathetic we are: that we will never be loved, happy or valuable unless we have the body, the face, the hair, even the personality that will apparently be ours, if only we buy their products."

"A few years back, when my style was 'punk grandma,' I picked up an amazing pair of sandals - orthopaedic ones, with really thick soles. I've given them away to a friend now, because these days my look is more '1980s substitute teacher gone wild.'"

"To love truly means recognizing that the true master is an eternal student."

"I just want to do what I do best, and that's fight. I love it."

"In the arithmetic of human affection, the more you give, the more you retain. This remains the cornerstone of personal mastery."

"A courageous heart knows that kindness can heal wounds that time cannot."