"You asked me to write an essay telling you what I have to say. What I realized is that I have been ordered to listen from the moment I was born but now I know it's my time to speak. What I figured out is that I've always seen myself as others have seen me-- as the poor kid, as the smart kid, as the dreamer who doesn't have a chance. I've known the comfort of my mother's arms and the violence of my father's disappointment. But everyone encounters obstacles. The trick is to discover the opportunities within them. I've learned that everyday we create who we are by what we do and what we think and how we behave. So now that it's my time to speak, I just hope I have something to say. I'm going to set my expectations high, and one day I'll exceed them."

-- from young americans, pilot episode