It was for them, for my girl and my grandma, and for all my loved ones who have passed on.

CNN: Fans question what is behind Te'o girlfriend hoax

He's been in my life ever since the first day I met him in 1963, when he was my rehearsal pianist for 'Funny Girl.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

As a black kitten competed with my sketchbook for lap space, I noticed a girl sitting on the ground by a neighbouring home.

BBC: The end of a wandering way of life?

Unfortunately for my wallet, Katie is a fan of the American Girl doll series by Mattel.

FORBES: Business Lessons From A Nine-Year Old

Mixed-race yes, but I couldn't fathom that my race could make me the "wrong kind of girl" for anyone.

CNN: His parents said, 'Not with a white girl'

Every year, my troop supports a local shelter for families of domestic abuse by supplying them with Girl Scout cookies.

WHITEHOUSE: Anyone Can Do It

Long before Snooki made Seaside Heights a mecca for bad behavior, I made the Jersey Shore my own as a wide-eyed young girl.

FORBES: Superstorm Sandy Offers a Rare Design Opportunity

Usually the girl in a story that no one is waiting for is fat, but my problem is more rare: I have freckles.

NEWYORKER: Ask Me If I Care

And it was very difficult for me not to turn into that little black girl from the Bay Area and roll my neck and say, look, I'm a poet.

NPR: Hip Hop Takes on Diplomatic Role with State Department

When my grandmother Florence was a little girl, she would sometimes be given five pennies for candy.

FORBES: What Equality Should We Seek in Society?