Margaret Houlihan

"A woman's place is wherever she wants it to be, and I intend to be right here."

"I didn't join the Army to play nurse to a bunch of surgeons with egos bigger than their scalpels."

"Success isn't about being the prettiest or the nicest—it's about being the best at what you do."

"Love is a luxury we can't afford in a place like this, but that doesn't mean we stop trying to feel human."

"I've learned that courage isn't the absence of fear; it's doing your job when you're terrified."

"Time moves differently in war. Minutes feel like hours, and hours disappear."

"The truth is, we're all just trying to survive with our sanity intact."

"Friendship in a war zone is the only thing that keeps you from going mad."

"I won't let sentiment cloud my judgment. That's how people get hurt."

"Beauty doesn't matter much when you're covered in blood."

"A woman in this Army has to be twice as tough and half as forgiving."

"Patience is a virtue I'm still working on, especially with incompetent men."

"Work is what saves us. It gives us purpose when everything else is chaos."

"I believe in doing things the right way, even when no one's watching."

"Death doesn't care about your rank or your feelings. It just comes."

"Perseverance is what separates the officers from the enlisted in my book."

"Gratitude for the small things—a hot shower, a clean bed—keeps you sane."

"I've found that power comes from competence, not from being liked."

"Health in war is a privilege, not a right."

"Motivation comes from knowing people depend on you to do your job right."

"Kindness doesn't make you weak; it makes you human."

"Fear is natural. Acting despite it is what matters."

"Money won't buy you peace of mind, I can tell you that much."

"Peace seems like a distant dream sometimes, but I have to believe in it."

"Leadership means making the hard decisions no one else wants to make."

"Relationships are complicated enough without adding war to the mix."

"Sometimes solitude is the only place you can think clearly."

"I don't have time for adventures—I have lives to save."

"Hope is what keeps a nurse going when the surgery doesn't work."

"Education taught me a lot, but experience taught me everything."