This I Believe

For years, Carla Saulter enjoyed having a car. But as her Seattle commutes got longer, she grew uneasy with how her personal habit was affecting the environment. Now car-free, Saulter believes she and her family are better off walking or taking the bus. We hear both her This I Believe essay and an interview with Bob Edwards.

Victor Hanson has grounded his life in the study of the Classics and in the land his family has farmed for six generations. By following in the footsteps of his ancestors, he believes he is never alone.

With movies like A Beautiful Mind and Apollo 13 to his credit, Oscar-winning producer Brian Grazer could rest on his laurels. But that’s not for him. Grazer believes in disrupting his comfort zone.

Although born and raised in England, writer Andrew Sullivan turns to America’s Declaration of Independence to find his beliefs rooted in the principles of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

When her biological family fell apart, Cecile Gilmer found a new family. She believes the love and kindness these chosen “relatives” gave her allowed her to become an open and loving person.

As a hospital chaplain, parent and writer, Susan Cosio often finds her life filled with responsibilities and distractions. But she believes the quiet time of a daily walk helps her stay connected to God.

To be “The Greatest of All Time,” boxing legend Muhammad Ali said you have to believe in yourself. It’s something Ali’s parents taught him as a child, and it’s helped him through the biggest challenge of his life: fighting Parkinson’s disease.

To be “The Greatest of All Time,” boxing legend Muhammad Ali said you have to believe in yourself. It’s something Ali’s parents taught him as a child, and it’s helped him through the biggest challenge of his life: fighting Parkinson’s disease. He died in 2016.

Former Secretary of State Warren Christopher negotiated international treaties and the release of hostages. He believed diplomacy—and life—work best when people trust and depend on one another.

Elvia Bautista was devastated when her brother was killed in a gang shooting. Now, she believes in remembering all the victims of gang violence even when doing so may endanger her own safety.

When she was young, Lauren LeBlanc had grand dreams of living in New York and singing on Broadway. Instead, she became a mom and schoolteacher in suburbia. While it’s not the life she once imagined, LeBlanc now knows she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Nurse Cortney Davis frequently encounters grief. For years, she sought to counter it with cheer and consolation, but now believes grief is to be embraced as a way of honoring of the fragility of life.

Growing up in Kenya, Pius Kamau was inspired by the equality preached by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now a surgeon in Denver, Kamau believes in caring for his patients, whatever their racial views.

Restaurant critic Jason Sheehan has a passion for barbecue with all the homemade fixings on the side. He believes barbecue unites us, comforts us and is the only thing he can’t get enough of.

As a hospice volunteer, Mary Cook shares in the grief of others. But it was her own loss that taught her how to heal. She believes that recovering from grief requires not a battle, but surrender.