Beginning in 1951, radio pioneer Edward R. Murrow asked Americans from all walks of life to write essays about their most fundamental and closely held beliefs. Half a century later, NPR, Atlantic Public Media and This I Believe, Inc. are partnering to recreate 'This I Believe' on the air and online.
September 28, 2008 · When a scruffy cat wandered into the prison yard at a Michigan correctional facility, Troy Chapman says the little orange stray disrupted the tough code of prison culture. Chapman, who was convicted of murder in 1985, says the cat reminded him that everyone wants to be needed.
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September 22, 2008 · When prenatal tests revealed his soon-to-be-born daughter would have Down syndrome, English professor Gregg Rogers feared he wouldn't be able to handle the responsibility. Now, three years later, Rogers realizes that what he once feared has become his salvation.
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September 14, 2008 · Growing up with dyslexia, William Wissemann learned how to break down words into smaller parts so he could understand them. As he got older, Wissemann found that this skill came in handy for solving everything from Rubik's Cubes, to life's tricky puzzles.
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September 11, 2008 · When audiologist Stephanie Disney adopted a multiracial daughter, she began to hear questions like, "What is she?" In explaining her relationship to her daughter, Disney came to understand that family is defined by love, not by birth or genetics.
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August 31, 2008 · In the depths of depression, writer Kij Johnson considered jumping off a bridge. But then she took up rock climbing and discovered the sport could help her embrace the risks and joys of life.
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August 25, 2008 · Sufiya Abdur-Rahman's name is key to her identity as the proud daughter of African-American converts to Islam. The writer and teacher believes black is not a condition she should have to rise above.
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August 17, 2008 · Ever since her mother died when Anne Donahue was a child, Anne has longed to know more about her. What music did she enjoy? What made her laugh? Now a mother herself, Donahue shares a few things she believes her daughter should know about her.
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August 14, 2008 · When he was a child, Howard White's mother taught him the importance of a simple, polite greeting. Now an executive at Nike, White believes everyone he meets deserves to be acknowledged. For him, that begins with "hello."
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August 3, 2008 · As a misfit half-Mexican teen growing up in southeast Los Angeles, Yvette Doss had a lot of questions. To find answers, she turned to the work of great philosophers — and came to believe that we are all qualified to ponder life's mysteries.
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July 28, 2008 · When Theresa MacPhail was 4 years old, her brother was killed in an accident. Devastated, MacPhail's mother became obsessed with protecting her only surviving child. As an adult, MacPhail came to believe that courage is a muscle that must be developed by facing fears.
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July 20, 2008 · Daniel Flanagan was a high-school dropout in a dead-end job; a self-described loser. But when faced with the responsibility of fatherhood, Flanagan decided to change his ways and return to school. He believes we all deserve "do-overs" in life.
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July 17, 2008 · Portland artist and activist damali ayo believes in recycling. Yes, it's good for the environment, but she also enjoys the challenge of finding new uses for stuff people discard. And ayo doesn't want her trash polluting someone else's backyard.
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July 6, 2008 · When Christine Little's teenage son had a heart transplant, she realized some other young person was dying just as her son was getting a chance to live. That selfless gift, and what her son did with it, shaped a lifelong belief for Little.
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June 30, 2008 · When Kim Phuc was 9 years old, her village in South Vietnam was bombed with napalm. A famous photo showed Kim running from the attack, naked and screaming. In the painful recovery from her burn wounds, Kim found that true healing came through forgiveness.
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June 22, 2008 · When he was young, Paul Thorn left the church he was raised in because he refused to publicly confess his sins. Since then, the Mississippi singer-songwriter has forged his own path to believing in God — a path free of fear and intimidation.
()In collaboration with Atlantic Public Media and This I Believe, Inc. All material is copyright; no reproduction or excerpting is permitted without written consent.
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