Defend Yourself. What Springs to Mind?

If you are called to give a quote or story that has stuck with you, and formed you into the person that you are today, what would you choose?
For myself, there are stories that have inspired me, entertained me, and stuck with me over the years. Two in particular that spring to mind are the science fiction novel, Ender's Game, and the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Roger Rabbit claimed, when he was handcuffed to Eddie Valiant:

"I'm a toon. Toons are supposed to make people laugh. Sometimes it's the only weapon we have."

Even when Roger was at his lowest, he was still true to what he was. There is nothing that could change his nature. Not only did he know his true nature, but he knew that he knew. He knew that he had to be true to himself and what he was, even when it made Eddie angry. Love him or hate him, Roger Rabbit was true to his nature.

 I read this book when I was ten years old. I wasn't much older than Ender Wiggins (the hero of the book) when I read it. The story was exciting. It was about childhood that I could see from my own life. Reading the story as an adult, I see things in a much different light. What impacted me most in this story was when Ender went to the Bugger homeworld. There he saw elements from a game he had played back in battle school. He recognized them in such a way that nobody else would have seen them. They were left as a message for him.
This still gives me the goosebumps when I think about it. As a ten-year old reading that idea for the first time, that something out there could be watching me, creating things that are meaningful to me, but not to anyone else ... it changed me. That idea that a story could be watching me. That changed the way that I looked at books. It changed what a story could be. That idea opened my mind.
Few stories have had the effect that Ender's Game had on me. There are some stories that speak to me directly. Was it the author speaking directly to me? Or was it the author tapping into some vast cosmic music that I also happen to have inside my head? I wonder. And that sense of wonder makes the journey fascinating.
The moral of this post is:

Be true to who you truly are. And watch for meaning in life that is put in place for you alone. There are signs that only you can see, which will lead you to words that only you can say. Be true.

What about you? What stories have made you? Comments are welcome.

*For more from Orson Scott Card, visit his website. His review of Ender's Game can be found here.