This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women

By Jay Allison and Dan Gediman, eds.
Published by Henry Holt
October 2006;$23.00US/$31.00CAN; 0-8050-8087-2

An Inspiring Collection of the Personal Philosophies of a Group of Remarkable Men and Women

Based on the National Public Radio series of the same name, This I Believe features eighty essayists -- from the famous to the unknown -- completing the thought that begins the book's title. Each piece compels readers to rethink not only how they have arrived at their own personal beliefs but also the extent to which they share them with others.

Featuring a list of well-known contributors -- including Isabel Allende, Colin Powell, Gloria Steinem, William F. Buckley Jr., Penn Jillette, Bill Gates, and John Updike -- the collection also contains essays by a Brooklyn lawyer; a part-time hospital clerk from Rehoboth, Massachusetts; a woman who sells Yellow Pages advertising in Fort Worth, Texas; and a man who serves on the state of Rhode Island's parole board.

The result is a stirring and provocative trip inside the minds and hearts of a diverse group of people whose beliefs -- and the incredibly varied ways in which they choose to express them -- reveal the American spirit at its best.

Reviews
"To hold this range of beliefs in the palm of your hand is as fine, as grounding, as it was hearing them first on the radio. Heartfelt, deeply cherished beliefs, doctrines for living (yet none of them doctrinaire). Ideas and ideals that nourish. You can see it in their faces, in the photos in this book. And read it in their words. I'm so proud that NPR helped carry this Edward R. Murrow tradition into a new century. And so glad to have it in print, to encounter again and again."
--Susan Stamberg

"My father, Edward R. Murrow, said that 'fresh ideas' from others helped him confront his own challenges. This superb collection of thought-provoking This I Believe essays, both from the new program heard on NPR and from the original1950s series, provides fresh ideas for all of us!"
--Casey Murrow

"Reading this gives me a feeling about this country I rarely get: a very visceral sense of all the different kinds of people who are living together here, with crazily different backgrounds and experiences and dreams. Like a Norman Rockwell painting where all the people happen to be real people, and all the stories are true. It makes me feel hopeful about America, reading this. Hopeful in a way that's in short supply lately."
--Ira Glass

"Now, as then, when Edward R. Murrow introduced the idea of This I Believe, this forward-thinking compilation serves as a wonderful antidote to the cynicism of the age."
--Daniel Schorr

"This I Believe is the heart and soul of the First Amendment, with Americans from every walk of life -- from yesterday and today -- writing about their personal philosophies. You will agree with some. You will disagree with others. But that's the whole point: to respect another person's right to speak freely. I believe we can learn something new from each other when we take the time to listen."
--Elizabeth Edwards

Excerpt
The following is an excerpt from the book "This I Believe"

The Power of Love to Transform and Heal

Jackie Lantry

I believe in the ingredients of love, the elements from which it is made. I believe in love's humble, practical components and their combined power.

We adopted Luke four years ago. The people from the orphanage dropped him off at our hotel room without even saying good-bye. He was nearly six years old, only twenty-eight pounds, and his face was crisscrossed with scars. Clearly, he was terrified. "What are his favorite things?" I yelled. "Noodles," they replied as the elevator door shut.

Luke kicked and screamed. I stood between him and the door to keep him from bolting. His cries were anguished, animal-like. He had never seen a mirror and tried to escape by running through one. I wound my arms around him so he could not hit or kick. After an hour and a half he finally fell asleep, exhausted. I called room service. They delivered every noodle dish on the menu. Luke woke up, looked at me, and started sobbing again. I handed him chopsticks and pointed at the food. He stopped crying and started to eat. He ate until I was sure he would be sick.

That night we went for a walk. Delighted at the moon, he pantomimed, "What is it?" I said, "The moon, it's the moon." He reached up and tried to touch it. He cried again when I tried to give him a bath until I started to play with the water. By the end of his bath the room was soaked and he was giggling. I lotioned him up, powdered him down, and clothed him in soft pj's. We read the book One Yellow Lion. He loved looking at the colorful pictures and turning the pages. By the end of the night he was saying "one yellow lion."

The next day we met orphanage officials to do paperwork. Luke was on my lap as they filed into the room. He looked at them and wrapped my arms tightly around his waist.

He was a sad, shy boy for a long time after those first days. He cried easily and withdrew at the slightest provocation. He hid food in his pillowcase and foraged in garbage cans. I wondered then if he would ever get over the wounds of neglect that the orphanage had beaten into him.

It has been four years. Luke is a smart, funny, happy fourth grader. He is loaded with charm and is a natural athlete. His teachers say he is well-behaved and works very hard. Our neighbor says she has never seen a happier kid.

When I think back, I am amazed at what transformed this abused, terrified little creature. It was not therapy, counselors, or medications. It did not cost money or require connections or great privilege. It was love: just simple, plain, easy to give. Love is primal. It is comprised of compassion, care, security, and a leap of faith. I believe in the power of love to transform. I believe in the power of love to heal.

Jackie Lantry is a part-time hospital clerk in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. She and her husband have adopted two girls and two boys from China. When Jackie asked her children what they believed in, they said "family."

Copyright © 2006 This I Believe, Inc.

Authors:
Jay Allison, the host and curator of This I Believe, is an independent broadcast journalist. His work appears often on NPR and has earned him five Peabody Awards. He is the founder of the public radio stations that serve Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and Cape Cod, where he lives.

Dan Gediman is the executive producer of This I Believe. His work has been heard on All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Fresh Air, Marketplace, Jazz Profiles, and This American Life. He has won many of public broadcasting's most prestigious awards, including the du Pont-Columbia Award.

To read more essays and submit your own, please visit www.thisibelieve.org.