I've often said that the most important thing you can give your children is wings. Because, you're not gonna always be able to bring food to the nest. You're... sometimes... they're gonna have to be able to fly by themselves.
Elizabeth EdwardsRead
I'm not a victim - I never want to be perceived that way.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes personal strength and resilience in the face of adversity.
Elizabeth Edwards conveys a powerful message about self-identity and agency, asserting that she refuses to see herself as a victim. By rejecting the victim label, she encourages a mindset focused on empowerment, resilience, and the ability to overcome challenges rather than being defined by them.
In practice
During a motivational speech about overcoming personal challenges.
I've often said that the most important thing you can give your children is wings. Because, you're not gonna always be able to bring food to the nest. You're... sometimes... they're gonna have to be able to fly by themselves.
I've had to come to grips with a God that fits my own experience, which is, my God could not be offering protection and not have protected my boy.
Part of resilience is deciding to make yourself miserable over something that matters, or deciding to make yourself miserable over something that doesn't matter.
I certainly have a lot to lament, as do we all, everybody has their griefs. But the griefs we can fix, shouldn't we go around fixing them?
... all things are possible if you are willing to put yourself on the line. You cannot stand back and hope for the best. You have to act.
If I had lost a leg, I would tell them, instead of a boy, no one would ever ask me if I was 'over it'. They would ask me how I was doing learning to walk without my leg. I was learning to walk and to breathe and to live without Wade. And what I was learning is that it was never going to be the life I had before.
Cold, hungry, scared as hell inside, but too damn brave to admit it.
Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm.
I do have a belief in God, and no matter what happens to me, things are gonna be OK. It doesn't matter whether the tumours have spread or not, because either way, I'm gonna turn out a winner.
I challenged God. I said, 'God, I know that I'm a sinner. I know that I won't probably have peace until You're in my heart. But I will not let You in my heart until You answer me, why? Why did you take my arms and legs? Why didn't You give me what everybody else has? God, until You answer me that question, I will not serve You.'
The biggest problem that women have is being ambivalent about their own power, ... We should be comfortable with the idea of wielding power. We shouldn't feel that it detracts from our femininity.
I feel lucky that I found my talent, not unlucky that I was born with a disability. When I'm on a horse, I'm more worried about what the riding hat is doing to my hair than what my bent legs and arms are doing. What riding has given me is respect.
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