Stefanie
"I was diagnosed in November 2005 with stage IV metastatic breast cancer. I was given one year to live. I have chosen to live beyond that time frame. I am living a no-bullshit kind of life. Just waking up every day is an emotional orgasm."
Note:Stefanie LaRue, a well-known activist for young women with breast cancer, died on May 31, 2017, at her home in Venice Beach, California
Silvia
"I am a great actress, and one day I'll win an Oscar. I know miracles happen."
David
"My father was an alcoholic and a drug addict. When he died, I felt both sad and relieved. I am now a children's counselor, helping abused children. I am proud of myself and my mother. She is my hero—a very strong woman."
Jeff
"I am struggling to find my place in the world, a place I am not comfortable with and am not sure I am meant for."
Theresa
"I am happier now at 48 and 350 pounds than I was at 28 and 150 pounds. Liking yourself is the first step to becoming a confident person, because if you don’t like yourself, how can you expect somebody else to like you?"
Martin
"The night before the deportation of the Jews, our whole family sat down together for dinner and made a promise to reunite one day. We broke that promise. My entire family was killed. Only my brother and I survived. I wrote a book called Broken Promise, and they made a movie based on my story with the same title."
Boris
"I want to die without knowing when. But if I get cancer, I will commit suicide. I’ll park my car in front of the police station in Venice and call 911, announcing my location and intention to end my life. Then I’ll hang up, pull the trigger of my 9 mm revolver, and that’s it. I respect the police; it’s a tough job, so I’ll make it easy for them. They will find me with a bullet in my head and close the investigation within 48 hours without suspecting anyone. I might also write a letter to them. I am old, and being sick might be too much to handle."
Note:Boris was diagnosed with cancer and committed suicide in 2019, following the exact steps as described.
Jirina & Jan
"My autistic son and I have been looking for a great family since we came to Los Angeles. It took us 15 years, but now we have it—a great big family of stuffed animals. They are wonderful; they listen, love, play, and are always there for us. We take them everywhere we go."
Note: Note: Jirina died of cancer in 2018 in a hospice in Los Angeles, and her son was placed in an autistic care center.
Adam
"After five years working as a reverend, my faith has grown too large. I came out of the closet: I am gay. I left the church a couple of months ago to embrace the fullness of life. I am currently working at Starbucks, but I feel free—free to love and accept people as they are."
Trevor
"Yeah, people are scared of me sometimes, but don’t judge a book by its cover."
Jasmine
"My parents don’t like tattoos, but I want to be a tattoo artist. That’s all I want to be."
Kast
"I am originally from Detroit, Michigan, and my family moved to Los Angeles when I was almost two years old. My father is Black and also a quarter Native American (Dakota), while my mother is Black and Native American (Cherokee) and half Jewish. One of my ancestors, about seven generations back, was the very first Jewish governor in the U.S. in 1801."
Nathan
"Most of the time, I feel completely disconnected from the human race. I have lost a lot of trust in people. And have I been in love before? No, I’ve never been in love."
Dante & Minda
"We came from a very small town in Georgia. We couldn’t live in the Bible Belt anymore; they said we were Satan worshippers and devils. One day, we packed our stuff into a car and left for Los Angeles, never looking back. We fit in better here."
Justin
"I ran away from home. My mother is a drug addict, and my grandparents are racists. I don’t hate; it’s something that doesn’t lead anywhere. Yeah, I learned a lot on the street. I have been homeless since I was 16."
Jesse
"Your world, as you know it, can change in an instant. I suffered an accident at the age of 17, hitting my head on a shallow sandbar after being knocked off my surfboard by a wave. Enjoy today; tomorrow is not guaranteed."
Scott
"I lost both of my parents at a young age, but my biggest fear, I think, is losing my hands. I wouldn’t be able to create art."
Barry
"Because I feel the world could end at any moment due to war or environmental disaster, I am more free to do things that I have always been scared of: plane travel, steroids, and smiling."
Christopher
"I am an aspiring makeup artist and hairstylist. I am always passionate about what I do; without passion, there is no reason to live."
