David Senra

Truthfulness, consistency, professionalism, kindness, compassion, manners, thoughtfulness, pride in yourself, honor, love, faith in and fidelity to your family, commitment, joy in your work, and a never-say-die thirst for life.

These are some of the things my mother taught me.

And that I struggle to live up to.

And so he goes back to describing a childhood.

He knows he does not have the things that he needs.

I never saw the inside of a restaurant until I was well into my 20s.

My father was a misanthrope who shunned most of humankind.

And so he knows he doesn't have what he wants.

And then he sees a glimpse of a better life.

And he describes this in such an incredible way.

And this is when his life really begins.

His life begins when he sees Elvis Presley perform for the very first time on TV.

Bruce calls Presley a human earthquake.

And so he says,

I don't know what his thoughts were.

I don't know whether he thought about the broader implications of his actions.

I do know this.

He lived a life he was driven to live and brought forth the truth that was within him and the possibilities within us.

How many of us can say that we committed all of ourselves to something?

I sat there transfixed in front of the television, my mind on fire.