Daniel's story was done so well that the students didn't know it wasn't a real boy. They wrote letters to Daniel saying they were sorry for what he went through and that they'll treat people equally. They got a chance to see what a boy their age went through.

We actually have students going to prom who wrote the letters themselves. It's finally coming full circle.

They learn a little more about independence. They have to shower on their own and brush their teeth when mom doesn't say too. It's an educational experience for the parents too. They realize that their kids aren't babies anymore and they're going into middle school.

There were students from all over the world. Their professor asked them to write thank-you letters. Almost every one of them said, 'We have a story like...' When you share stories, you see the connecting points, which are gifts that connect us to each other. You learn that you don't have to be in conflict.

Letters are useful as a means of expressing the ideal self. . . . In letters we can reform without practice, beg without humiliation, snip and shape embarrassing experiences to the measure of our own desires. . . .

It's funny; in this era of e-mail and voice mail and all those things that even I did not grow up with, a plain old paper letter takes on amazing intimacy.