Ten Years Later
Page 22
“You can change but you have to want it badly enough. I tell my clients every day, ‘I will give you every tool I have in my brain and in my heart that I used to lose weight, that I used to survive my relationship and become a survivor, and that I use in life in general. I will give you absolutely every tool, but I can’t want it badly enough for you. You have to want it yourself.’ If you really want to change who you are for the better, it definitely takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Lindsay Beck—fought for her life and her dream to have a family
“Cancer absolutely changed me. I used to joke that it sparked my ‘quarter-life crisis.’ Seniors often say they wish they knew then what they know now. In a lot of ways, I think cancer gave me that gift at a very young age, and I’ve had the privilege to live my life with that perspective. There are daily habit changes, like eliminating as many toxins as possible from my environment by using natural cleaning products and eating organic. There are also deep changes, like the drive to live an extraordinary life. I do wonder, though: Did cancer do this to me or would I have come to it anyway? I don’t have answers, but I know that who I am today is very different from who I was before cancer.”
Patrick Weiland—lost a sister to domestic violence and overcame drug addiction
“If I hadn’t changed I’d be dead. There’s no question. So, can people change? Yes. Can you wake up one day and change? No. It’s a very incremental process and I think it’s one that’s so mystifying. Even with the murder of my sister, it took me a year and three months until I was able to stop using. So, there are moments that are wake-up calls for us, but it’s our decision whether we listen, our willingness to change our thinking. I do think it’s a myth that we can change ourselves alone, as an island, by ourselves. We need the people who are close to us, the people in our lives who love us and the people we love, in order to change. They’re the ones. It’s with their help.”
Diane Van Deren—elite ultra runner who underwent brain surgery following a decade of seizures
“Did it change who I am and how I think about life? No. But it made me stronger, it made me more stubborn, it elevated my perseverance. That’s what it did. Now I can encourage change. I can have an impact. What I’ve been through has given me an opportunity to make change by having a voice and sharing what I’ve learned.”
Ron Clifford—survived the 9/11 attacks but lost his sister, niece, and family friend
“I didn’t die there. I wasn’t killed there. I made it out alive, so my life had to change there. The change is I’m loving life a lot more. I’m treasuring life a lot more. I love the small things. I love the big things. I love life. Before, I was more concerned with work and putting the bacon on the table and paying the mortgage. Now I just take a deep breath and think, Oh my gosh, look at that seagull. Look at that magnificent landscape over there. I appreciate life a lot more.”
Roxanne Quimby—from organic rags to riches
“I see our life on earth and all of creation as evolving toward enlightenment and perfection. In order to realize progress on the path, we have to let go and keep moving forward. Evolution is managed change rather than random change. I think both kinds are fun and keep life interesting!”
My hope is that this book offers you a sense of peace about the future and the power we all have to shape ours. Each of the six people you’ve met never imagined what a decade would mean to their journeys; they focused instead on soldiering through each day. Now, looking back, they are grateful and empowered, and most importantly, passionate about living their next ten years to the fullest. May you be inspired to embrace the what-ifs in your life, to trade your fears for faith. Take a chance, push through indecision, celebrate the unknown, and always believe in a bright future. It’s possible, no matter how impossible it may seem at any given moment.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My thanks and a huge hug:
To Jon Karp, who walks around all day with a lightbulb over his head that blinks bright ideas. They never stop and they always give you goosebumps.
To my editor, Marysue Rucci, for her wise eyes and enduring spirit. How did you help me give birth to my book at the same time you were on bed rest, nurturing the little girl inside of you? Rock star. And to Marysue’s right (and left) hand, Emily Graff. Super star.
To the movers in publicity: Tracey Guest, Jessica Zimmerman, and Rebecca Marsh. And the shakers in marketing: Andrea DeWerd and Richard Rhorer.
To Megan Kopf, a master juggler, who somehow planned her wedding at the same time she was “getting me to the church on time” for the whirlwind of publicity. You deserve two honeymoons.
To my agent, Mel Berger, who is always there when I need him and who I’m always glad to see, even when I don’t need a thing.
To the book’s six superstars who make my challenges look like blessings: I am in awe of your strength and courage. Each of you let me drag you back to the dark days, over and over again, as I checked off my endless list of questions. You went there repeatedly with grace and patience and for that I am grateful. Amy, Lindsay, Patrick, Diane, Ron, and Roxanne: You are gems. What an honor to mine your stories.
And to Time. Without you, we’d all be stuck wondering instead of arriving at the glorious other side of what if.
I’ve saved the best for last. To Jane Lorenzini, who not only has a gift, she is one. Janie can string together four words and instantly move you. But beyond being an exceptional writer, she is an even better friend. I am lucky.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hoda Kotb was named coanchor of the fourth hour of Today in August 2007. She has also been a Dateline NBC correspondent since April 1998 and is the New York Times bestselling author of Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee. In her years at NBC, Hoda has covered a wide variety of domestic and international stories and has received numerous awards, including the 2008 Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award and the prestigious Peabody in 2006. The three-time Emmy winner also won the 2003 Gracie Award and the 2002 Edward R. Murrow Award. She resides in New York City.
ABOUT THE COAUTHOR
Jane Lorenzini is a freelance writer and coauthor of The New York Times bestseller, Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee. A professional writer for nearly three decades, Jane enjoyed a fifteen-year career as a television news anchor and reporter. She also designs and manufactures her own line of stationery products called plain jane. She lives in Tennessee.
Share your own inspiring Ten Years Later story at
www.TenYearsLaterBook.com or by emailing
TenYearsLater@simonandschuster.com.
ALSO BY HODA KOTB
Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee
We hope you enjoyed reading this Simon & Schuster.
* * *
Join our mailing list and get updates on new releases, deals, bonus content and other great books from Simon & Schuster.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
or visit us online to sign up at
eBookNews.SimonandSchuster.com
Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
Copyright © 2013 by Hoda Kotb
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or
portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address
Simon & Schuster Subsidiary Rights Department,
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.
First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition January 2013
SIMON & SCHUSTER and colophon are registered trademarks
of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors
to your live event. For more information or to book an event,
contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at
1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.
Desi
gned by Akasha Archer
Jacket design by Jackie Seow
Jacket photograph by Julie Brothers
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kotb, Hoda.
Ten years later : six people who faced adversity and transformed their lives / Hoda Kotb; with Jane Lorenzini. — First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.
p. cm.
1. Life change events—Psychological aspects. 2. Adjustment (Psychology) 3. Biography. I. Lorenzini, Jane, author. II. Title.
BF637.L53K68 2013
155.2’40922—dc23
2012042253
ISBN 978-1-4516-5603-9
ISBN 978-1-4516-5605-3 (ebook)