That was my dream, to compete against the best surfers in the best waves. But as a kid, it all seemed so unattainable. It was this big dream, but deep down I never thought it could really happen. But my parents always believed I could do it, and they helped me get through all the stages and take all the right steps.

After God and my family, it's surf. I don't imagine me not surfing. Surf brings me smile every day.

Sometimes you surf well and still don't win. It happens to everyone. You learn that one big score doesn't mean much if you don't have a backup. I guess every rookie learns that as time goes by. I took some big lessons from my losses.

I worked in the family business, which was my father's shoe making company that he had inherited from his father, and that led me to become interested in what could be achieved by a great Italian brand. That became my ambition as a young man.

Family love is messy, clinging, and of an annoying and repetitive pattern, like bad wallpaper.

Some kids win the lottery at birth; far too many don't - and most people have a hard time catching up over the rest of their lives. Children raised in disadvantaged environments are not only much less likely to succeed in school or in society, but they are also much less likely to be healthy adults.

My family is all obsessed with comedy. I grew up watching a lot of comedy in the house. I used to watch Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy with my dad. But my mom is more into slapstick stuff.