Quotes from Louis Zamperini

I was a rotten kid. My excitement came from seeing what I could get away with.

I ended up in the Army Air Corps in the Pacific, operating out of Ayuka field in Hawaii.

God has given me so much. He expects so much out of me.

I've got to say that is - the highest emotion of the human experience is going down in a plane knowing your going to die!

Every soldier should learn survival on land, sea, and in the air.

If you hate somebody, it's like a boomerang that misses its target and comes back and hits you in the head. The one who hates is the one who hurts.

That's one thing you learn in sports. You don't give up; you fight to the finish.

When you're on a raft, you pray like in a foxhole.

All I did was pray to God, every day. In prison camp, the main prayer was, 'Get me home alive, God, and I'll seek you and serve you.' I came home, got wrapped up in the celebration, and forgot about the hundreds of promises I'd made to God.

I couldn't speak English. I'm in kindergarten, and the only reason I got through to first grade is because I cheated.

Hate is self-destructive. If you hate somebody, you're not hurting the person you hate. You're hurting yourself. And that's a healing. Actually, it's a real healing, forgiveness.

'Unbroken' was published as a help to society.

Even at my age, I'm trying to improve. Never give up, no matter what. Even if you get last place - finish.

I'd made it this far and refused to give up because all my life I had always finished the race.

All I want to tell young people is that you're not going to be anything in life unless you learn to commit to a goal. You have to reach deep within yourself to see if you are willing to make the sacrifices.

Yet a part of you still believes you can fight and survive no matter what your mind knows. It's not so strange. Where there's still life, there's still hope. What happens is up to God.

I think the hardest thing in life is to forgive. Hate is self destructive. If you hate somebody, you're not hurting the person you hate, you're hurting yourself. It's a healing, actually, it's a real healing...forgiveness.

People tell me, "You're such an optimist". Am I an optimist? An optimist says the glass is half full. A pessimist says the glass is half empty. A survivalist is practical. He says, "Call it what you want, but just fill the glass." I believe in filling the glass.

The great commandment is that we preach the gospel to every creature, but neither God nor the Bible says anything about forcing it down people's throats.

God knew my needs and took care accordingly.

The world, we'd discovered, doesn't love you like your family loves you.

To live, a man needs food, water, and a sharp mind.

I was raised to face any challenge.

You only have one life. You should never be too busy to save it.