This was my first time in eight tries that I’d finally won—having already lost for the seventh time earlier that night—so when I got up onstage, I started my speech with a line that a friend had suggested to me. I said, “Well, you broke my streak.” That got a laugh, but there was truth in it too. It was a truly powerful moment to see that entire audience stand up and applaud me, and the gratitude I felt was real.
