This I Believe
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.
Essays New and Old
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.
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.
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."
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
June 19, 2008 · As a politician, bureaucrat and consultant, Christine Todd Whitman has had many people telling her what to do and what to think. But over the years, the former governor and former EPA chief has come to believe in trusting her own inner voice.
June 8, 2008 · Penn State student Colin Bates is an aide to two men who are mentally disabled. It's a stressful job, and the pay is low, but Bates loves the work. It has given him new perspectives on success and failure, and he's discovered it's OK to need help.
June 2, 2008 · Brighton Earley's mom shops at a gas station because she can no longer afford to buy food at the grocery store. At first, Earley was ashamed to go on these shopping trips, but now the Los Angeles student believes the trips have taught her a valuable lesson.
May 25, 2008 · Washington attorney Kenneth Feinberg managed the compensation funds for the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. But he felt it was wrong to pay the family of a deceased banker more than the family of a deceased janitor. The experience left him believing that all lives should be valued equally.
May 22, 2008 · Laura Hall used to hate the hip-hop music her husband listened to. But when she had to quit school and take a factory job to support her family, Hall started to hear the songs in a new way. Now she says hip-hop is a source of inspiration for her.
