Synopses & Reviews
In the 1950s, Edward R. Murrow's radio program This I Believe gave voice to the feelings and treasured beliefs of Americans around the country. Fifty years later, the popular update of the series has been heard on public radio since 2005 and continues to explore the beliefs and guiding principles by which Americans live. This book brings together essays on love from people all around the country whose sentiments and stories will surprise, move, and inspire you.
Whether writing about romantic love or love for family and friends, love for pets, or love of nature, places, or humanity, these essayists share deeply personal thoughts on what love means to them, how they express it, and what it has taught them about themselves and others.
Dr. Ross Hays writes about how the families of seriously ill patients show him the power of love to heal. Lorraine Kelly, a lawyer, shares what her visits to jailed clients tell her about the power of love denied. For Shannon Denney, love is in the kitchen, where she connects to her family's past by making her grandmother's coconut pie, while for Debra Bronow, love is spread through gifts of her hand-knit socks. Playwright Louise Gray simply explains why love is like pickled pig feet.
In their intimate and honest stories, the contributors share acts of hope and faith, reflections on grief and loss, and celebrations of acceptance and forgiveness. A testament to the strength and endurance of the bonds that connect us, this collection is a wonderful gift for everyone who believesor struggles to believein love.
Review
In these 60 short essays, men and women of all ages and backgrounds write about love: of a teacher, house, step family, the poor or needy, mountains, and even growing old. While "Love on Aisle Three" is about a small group that gathers round an adorable baby in a cart, several essays explore love not of a person or thing, but an activity like cooking or knitting. In "God Is In Her Hand," John Samuel Tieman writes, "Love is in the hand that crafts, sculpts, sews, caresses, soothes." The most moving pieces examine love tied to a difficult situation. In "The Courage to Let Go," Gale Workman's father, after taking care of her mother for months, finally allows himself to say goodbye. Originally started on Edward R. Murrow's 1950s radio show, this effort to get ordinary citizens to discuss their core values has produced essays that vary greatly in quality and suffer in this form from the absence of a human voice. Still, this anthology beautifully captures our need, and the sacrifices we make, for love. (Dec.) (Publishers Weekly, November 8, 2010)
Synopsis
Inspiring essays on love shared by men, women, and young people from all walks of lifeIn the 1950's, Edward R. Murrow's radio program, This I Believe, gave voice to the feelings and treasured beliefs of Americans around the country. Fifty years later, the popular update of the series, which now continues on Bob Edwards Weekend on public radio, explores the beliefs that people hold dear today. This book brings together essays on love from ordinary people far and wide whose sentiments and stories will surprise, inspire, and move you.
- Includes extraordinary essays written by "ordinary" Americans on love in its many manifestations-from romantic love and love of family to love of place and love of animals
- Paints a compelling portrait of the diverse range of beliefs and experiences related to what is perhaps the most powerful and complex of human emotions-love
- Based on the popular This I Believe radio series and thisibelieve.org Web site
By turns funny and profound, yet always engaging, This I Believe: On Love is a perfect gift to give or to keep.
Synopsis
Based on the popular "This I Believe" radio series and the thisibelieve.org Web site, this collection contains inspiring essays on love shared by men, women, and young people from all walks of life.
Synopsis
This I Believe On LoveIn this book, you'll discover a diverse and engaging collection of essays about love written by men and women of all ages and from all walks of life. From the uplifting to the poignant, these essays explore the many facets of love and show what is perhaps the most powerful and universal of human emotions at work in the joys and sorrows of everyday lives.
"I believe that love is not found in the mind or the heart. Love is found in the hands. Love is in the nightly back scratch I give my wife. My wife kneading the dough, that's love. Love is in the hand that crafts, sculpts, sews, caresses, soothes."
—John Samuel Tieman, Missouri
"My husband's death affected our family greatly, but his life impacted it more. He will live as long as one of us is alive to remember and to love him. . . . I believe that love is stronger than death."
—Opal Ruth Prater, Virginia
"Love is not about liking people. It is about seeing yourself in them. . . . There seems to be no substitute for the work of persistently imagining how I could be the other. This is what gives me the insights to actually change things. This, I believe, is how we are meant to love our enemies."
—David Waln, Oregon
"We are all of us empty people, searching for meaning after our failures. Love is what enables us to pick up the pieces of our broken lives and go on, renewed, undeservedly but steadfastly."
—Sarah Culp Searles, Tennessee
About the Author
Dan Gediman is executive director of This I Believe, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that engages people in writing and sharing essays describing the core values that guide their daily lives. These short statements of belief have been featured on public radio since 2005. Gediman is the coeditor of the
New York Times bestseller
This I Believe and
This I Believe II.
John Gregory is editorial director and Mary Jo Gediman is outreach director of This I Believe, Inc.
Table of Contents
Introduction.
The Love I Choose (Jessica Mercer Zerr).
They Built a Family (Laura Chamberlain).
A New Kind of Love (Rachel Wegner).
In My Father’s Tears (Lawrence Kessenich).
The Beauty of Aging (Debi Knight Kennedy).
The Gift of Being (Lorraine Kelly).
Gray Hairs and Wrinkles (Fabiola Piña).
Love Is Stronger Than Death (Opal Ruth Prater).
Come to My Table (Shannon Denney).
By Best Friend (Raymond Allinger).
Leave the Light On (Marianne Rogowski).
How we Love Our Enemies (David Waln).
What We Tried to Do (Louise V. Gray).
The Most Powerful Medicine (Ross Hays).
The Value of Your Life (Jenna Greer).
Hand-Knit Socks (Debra Bronow).
Deciding to Love Her (Amy Simmons Farber).
Love on Four Feet (Sarah Culp Searles).
A Walk in the Woods Together (Cindy Lollar).
Sam’s Valentine (Kathy Heffernan).
To Dwell in Possibility (Patricia Bennett).
Duck Blind Lessons (James Johnson).
First Friend (Susan Senator).
Amazing Grace (Korinthia Klein).
Love Lives Through Them All (Tanuj Bansal).
Brotherly Love (Katie Weiner).
Old Love (Jane R. Martin).
Pink Moments (Connie Spittler).
Love Like a Child (Mary Lineberger).
A Death He Freely Accepted (Greg Gatjanis).
The Blessings of Step (Janet Jayne).
Here’s to you, Merrie (Jordyn Maeda).
God Knows About Sacrifice (Lynne Scott).
Love Is a Verb (Sarah Stadler).
The Friend That Makes Me Complete (Penny Hagin).
A Magical Impact (Jeremy Green).
Put on Your Heavy Coat (Ellen Graf).
God Is in Her Hand (John Samuel Tieman).
A Gift of Unique Beauty (Cynthia Chauhan).
Four Sisters in Life and Death (Elynne Chaplik-Aleskow).
My Family Tree (Brenda Huff).
“Staying Close” (Ginny Taylor).
Love on Aisle Three (David Wuescher).
Swing-shift Kisses (Scott Saalman).
The Courage to Let Go (Gale Workman).
All the Mothering You Do (Patrice Vecchione).
Life Is a Battle (Elliana Grace and Julie Chinitz).
Show and Tell (Ann Erik).
A Tender Lullaby (Lee Reeves).
The Yellow House (Julie M. Sellers).
A Powerful Act of Love (Susan Hall).
Pennies from Heaven (Reg Stark).
Who We Really Are Inside (Matthew Schmidt).
Creation Is the Creator (Vicki Watson).
The Power of Friendship (Nadia Henderson).
To Love the Person in Front of Me (Karla Gregen).
Love from Head to Toe (Lorena Templeton Querns).
Made by Hand (Mary Mrugalski).
A Dog’s Life (Fred Flaxman).
Appendix: How to Write Your Own This I Believe Essay.
Acknowledgments.