This I Believe

While walking along an Alaskan beach, Debi Knight Kennedy found an old, battered seashell that intrigued her. Now, Ms. Kennedy has come to see the holes and imperfections in the shell as a lesson in appreciating the beauty of aging.

Laurie Uttich believes in the power of pack animals—mammals who help the other members of the pack in times of great need, like job loss, illness, and death.

Cynthia Chauhan believes that memories of loved ones provide life-sustaining depth and meaning to her life, especially during difficult times.

Tanuj Bansal believes in the power of love, a power that can shatter generations of rooted prejudice and bring two extreme ends of the world together.

As both Second Lady and a military mom, Dr. Jill Biden shares her belief on the importance of supporting the whole military family when a loved one has been deployed.

Iraq War veteran Michael J. Whitehead shares some of the lessons he learned on the battlefield in Iraq, about the strength of the Iraqi people, and the importance of leaving the country in better shape than he found it.

Karen Sheehan grew up in a military family that traveled constantly throughout her childhood. But no matter where in the world they lived, her mother always made it home.

Kenric Smith is a major in the United States Army who believes that the strength of our military stands directly on the back of our military families.

Living in a public housing project with two birth children, ages eleven and six, Susie Green decided to open up her home, and her heart, to an energetic toddler who needed a family.

Granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, this woman from upstate New York experienced true compassion for the pain and grief of others while visiting Nagasaki on the 50th anniversary of the atomic bomb detonation.

All Greg Gatjanis believes about living a good and worthy life his father passed on to him in one still moment.

Scott Saalman, of Jasper, Indiana, learned much about love from observing his parents' daily kiss goodbye.

Leslie Guttman, an independent journalist who lives in Lexington, Kentucky, believes that people are placed into our lives for a reason, and that those encounters, however small, can be transformative.

Whether hitchhiking to work or bicycling across the country, Wired Magazine founding editor Kevin Kelly has always encountered strangers willing to help him. Kelly believes his openness to their kindness is as important as their willingness to offer it.

All those aggressive drivers, dreadful waiters and clueless politicians may not be as terrible as we think. Instead of letting hatred cloud his judgment, economist Edward Glaeser says he prefers to see others as decent people doing the best they can.