Former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said all she wanted to do for most of the past week was "curl up with a good book with a dog and never leave the house again."
Clinton made her first public appearance Wednesday night in Washington after conceding the presidential election to Republican Donald Trump a week ago.
She appeared at the Children's Defense Fund's Beat the Odds program, which honored five young people who overcame tragedy to become excellent students and are on their way to outstanding professional careers.
Clinton admitted that coming to the event "wasn't the easiest thing for me." But she said the five young men and women the fund was saluting never gave up after facing violence, poverty and abandonment.