I have feared, at times, that my self-reliance, even more than my prominence, might prove hard for any man to take. - Sonia Sotomayor

Esas cosas no se pueden medir ni pesar. No puedes decir: esta cantidad de amor equivale a esta cantidad de sufrimiento. No son opuestos que se cancelan mutuamente; ambos son verdaderos al mismo tiempo.

Her rocking chair of carved wood and woven cane tilted between this world and another that was beyond imagining, wafting scents of talcum and medicinal tea, auras of lace-edged santos whose eyes rolled up to a heaven too close for comfort.

When a young person, even a gifted one, grows up without proximate living examples of what she may aspire to become — whether lawyer, scientist, artist, or leader in any realm — her goal remains abstract. Such models as appear in books or on the news, however inspiring or revered, are ultimately too remote to be real, let alone influential. But a role model in the flesh provides more than inspiration; his or her very existence is confirmation of possibilities one may have every reason to doubt, saying, 'Yes, someone like me can do this.