Reviews: This I Believe
I listen to NPR on a fairly regular basis and heard this one in my car not too long ago. The concept was pretty cool and I have wanted to check the site out since then.
I liked listening to this article more than I liked reading it. You can hear growth through his pain. His voice embodies what it means to accept his obstacles and move forward. Plus who doesn’t like the American dream success story of a "poor son of immigrants to Harvard graduate?"
Living My Prayer
Sister Helen Prejean
"I watch what I do to see what I really believe.”
Reality check! It really doesn’t matter what my beliefs are if I am dead to acting them out in everyday life. In this essay, Sister Helen truly embodies what she was called to do. Not only is this just her philosophy on life, but it is her life.
There is No God
Penn Jillette
One great thing about reading through some of these essays is you get different spectrums of ideas and thoughts. Not only do you get to hear about a nun living out her call from God to literally live her beliefs, but you get to read about why Penn Jillette believes there isn’t a God. And it wasn’t offensive--it was enlightening. The truth is, we don’t need God to love and respect one another. That doesn’t mean I don’t believe in God, but it was cool to see things from Penn’s perspective.
Combating the Tyranny of the Positive Attitude
Barbara Held
“I believe that we would be better off if we let everyone be themselves-positive, negative, or even somewhere in-between.”
Oh man, I totally feel this way! Sometimes I don’t want to smile! Don’t ask me to smile! I’m upset and I don’t need to be positive, being happy when something lame happens makes zero sense.
Creating Our Own Happiness
Wayne Coyne
“Through the power of our own minds, we can help ourselves.”
It is so funny how complex personal beliefs can be. I can absolutely agree with Barbara Held, and yet I can also relate to Wayne’s belief that we can make our own happiness!
Freeing Myself Through Forgiveness
Yolanda Young
“I believe in forgiveness. I give it freely and in doing so, free myself.”
I Am Not My Body
Lisa Sandin
“I am my words, my ideas and my actions. I am filled with love, humor, ambition and intelligence. This I believe: I am your fellow human being and, like you, I am so much more than a body.”
A Reverence for All Life
Michelle Gardner-Quinn
She was murdered two days after finishing this essay. Pretty wild.
A Feeling of Wildness
David Gessner
“It is here on Cape Cod, on the domestic beach where I first walked holding my mother’s hand, and where I later spread my father’s ashes, that I learned that my wildest moments are often closest to home.”
A Marriage That’s Good Enough
Corinne Colbert
“If you’re unhappy, ask yourself: Am I unhappy because I really don’t have what I need, or because I just want more?”
Returning to What’s Natural
Amelia Baxter-Stoltzfus
I liked listening to this article more than I liked reading it. You can hear growth through his pain. His voice embodies what it means to accept his obstacles and move forward. Plus who doesn’t like the American dream success story of a "poor son of immigrants to Harvard graduate?"
Living My Prayer
Sister Helen Prejean
"I watch what I do to see what I really believe.”
Reality check! It really doesn’t matter what my beliefs are if I am dead to acting them out in everyday life. In this essay, Sister Helen truly embodies what she was called to do. Not only is this just her philosophy on life, but it is her life.
There is No God
Penn Jillette
One great thing about reading through some of these essays is you get different spectrums of ideas and thoughts. Not only do you get to hear about a nun living out her call from God to literally live her beliefs, but you get to read about why Penn Jillette believes there isn’t a God. And it wasn’t offensive--it was enlightening. The truth is, we don’t need God to love and respect one another. That doesn’t mean I don’t believe in God, but it was cool to see things from Penn’s perspective.
Combating the Tyranny of the Positive Attitude
Barbara Held
“I believe that we would be better off if we let everyone be themselves-positive, negative, or even somewhere in-between.”
Oh man, I totally feel this way! Sometimes I don’t want to smile! Don’t ask me to smile! I’m upset and I don’t need to be positive, being happy when something lame happens makes zero sense.
Creating Our Own Happiness
Wayne Coyne
“Through the power of our own minds, we can help ourselves.”
It is so funny how complex personal beliefs can be. I can absolutely agree with Barbara Held, and yet I can also relate to Wayne’s belief that we can make our own happiness!
Freeing Myself Through Forgiveness
Yolanda Young
“I believe in forgiveness. I give it freely and in doing so, free myself.”
I Am Not My Body
Lisa Sandin
“I am my words, my ideas and my actions. I am filled with love, humor, ambition and intelligence. This I believe: I am your fellow human being and, like you, I am so much more than a body.”
A Reverence for All Life
Michelle Gardner-Quinn
She was murdered two days after finishing this essay. Pretty wild.
A Feeling of Wildness
David Gessner
“It is here on Cape Cod, on the domestic beach where I first walked holding my mother’s hand, and where I later spread my father’s ashes, that I learned that my wildest moments are often closest to home.”
A Marriage That’s Good Enough
Corinne Colbert
“If you’re unhappy, ask yourself: Am I unhappy because I really don’t have what I need, or because I just want more?”
Returning to What’s Natural
Amelia Baxter-Stoltzfus