Quotes by Bethany Hamilton

Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That's what little girls are made of.

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

When I was about five, I gave my heart to Jesus Christ, and since then it's just been a stronghold in my life. Really, through the shark attack and all the hard times that my family and I went through, it gave us unity and perseverance to push through all this crazy stuff that we never knew was going to happen.

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

Strive to find things to be thankful for, and just look for the good in who you are!

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

It's easy to look at the things of this world to solve our challenges and obstacles in life, but when we submit our lives to Christ, His grace, mercy, peace and love will bring true fulfillment to our lives.

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

I guess I just like to challenge myself and push myself harder to do things that I don't think I can, to do things that other people do not think I can. It pushes me. I push my own personal limits.

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

Love God; love others; do your best in all you do, even if you fall short!

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

Surfing for me is more than my lifestyle; it's my passion, my love, and it's a part of me.

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

I think it doesn't matter if you are the best surfer in the world. I'm going to try to be the best surfer I can be. It's not all about competing and being the best. It's more about having fun and just doing what you love.

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

God created the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the waves for our enjoyment. Surfing is just my way of worshipping Him.

— Bethany Hamilton

Happiness

The day I got back on my board... it was not necessarily hard. I was just so glad to get back in the water, because I'd been anxious for like a week. When I first got up on my first wave, or it was actually my third wave, but I rode it all the way to the beach, and after that, I just had, like, tears of happiness... I was so stoked to be out there.

— Bethany Hamilton

Happiness

Learning how to deal with people and their reactions to my life is one of the most challenging things... people staring at me, people asking rude questions, dealing with media, stuff like that.

— Bethany Hamilton

Education

Like, with one arm I know I can surf, but competitive surfing can be really frustrating, and sometimes you don't do as well as you want to. It can be discouraging at times. But whenever I do get frustrated, I just focus on God.

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

Being out there in the ocean, God's creation, it's like a gift He has given us to enjoy.

— Bethany Hamilton

Happiness

Besides surfing, I play tennis, volleyball, I swim, I run hills, or I do high-intensity, high-interval workouts. I'm up at 5 A.M. every day.

— Bethany Hamilton

Success

I don't know how long I'll be competing, but I'll always be surfing. I'll be surfing until I'm old.

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

God will give us the strength to be able to handle things. I mean, you can try to do it on your own, and sometimes you can pull off some stuff, but in the long run, it's much easier with Him by our side.

— Bethany Hamilton

Courage

I'm a surfer at heart. Both my parents moved to Hawaii in the 1970s, where they met and became Christians. Then they taught me and my two brothers how to love the Lord - and how to surf!

— Bethany Hamilton

Love

I'm not a vegetarian by any means; I eat fish. But the problem with shark finning is they catch the shark, cut their fins and throw them back in the ocean, and to me, that's wrong. If you're going to kill an animal, you should use the entire animal and do it humanely. I'm definitely not a big fan.

— Bethany Hamilton

Life

It was Jesus who gave me peace when the shark severed my arm. I trust in Jesus whenever I'm going through a hard time. I see all the beautiful things that have come out of my situation. I'm able to share my story with young girls who have few role models, and I can help others cope with what they have been through.

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

To lose your everyday life of surfing and being creative on waves, enjoying the ocean - that's scary to me. It was essential to at least try surfing again and get out there and see how it went.

— Bethany Hamilton

Happiness

One arm might handicap me a little in competition, but I just work with what changes I know I have to make, and I'm pretty used to it now. It mainly depends on the wave conditions... I only get half the waves everyone else rides, so mine have to be good!

— Bethany Hamilton

Success

We all need that extra friend outside of our immediate family to talk about that extra stuff you wouldn't normally talk to your parents about.

— Bethany Hamilton

Friendship

I believe in Jesus Christ, and I believe He gave me the passion and determination to continue surfing. You fall off the horse, and you get back on. I had to go for it.

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom

I don't care to be famous. But at the same time, you look at all the role models these little girls have, and they don't have anyone to look up to. I mean, it's weird, but if I just hid out and didn't let myself be known, who would they look up to instead, you know?

— Bethany Hamilton

Wisdom