The Original Invitation from 'This I Believe'

This invites you to make a very great contribution: nothing less than a statement of your personal beliefs, of the values which rule your thought and action. Your essay should be about three minutes in length when read loud, written in a style as you yourself speak, and total no more than 500 words.

We know this is a tough job. What we want is so intimate that no one can write it for you. You must write it yourself, in the language most natural to you. We ask you to write in your own words and then record in your own voice. You may even find that it takes a request like this for you to reveal some of your own beliefs to yourself. If you set them down they may become of untold meaning to others.

We would like you to tell not only what you believe, but how you reached your beliefs, and if they have grown, what made them grow. This necessarily must be highly personal. That is what we anticipate and want.

It may help you in formulating your credo if we tell you also what we do not want. We do not want a sermon, religious or lay; we do not want editorializing or sectarianism or ‘finger-pointing.’ We do not even want your views on the American way of life, or democracy or free enterprise. These are important but for another occasion. We want to know what you live by. And we want it in terms of ‘I,’ not the editorial ‘We.’

Although this program is designed to express beliefs, it is not a religious program and is not concerned with any religious form whatever. Most of our guests express belief in a Supreme Being, and set forth the importance to them of that belief. However, that is your decision, since it is your belief which we solicit.

But we do ask you to confine yourself to affirmatives: This means refraining from saying what you do not believe. Your beliefs may well have grown in clarity to you by a process of elimination and rejection, but for our part, we must avoid negative statements lest we become a medium for the criticism of beliefs, which is the very opposite of our purpose.

We are sure the statement we ask from you can have wide and lasting influence. Never has the need for personal philosophies of this kind been so urgent. Your belief, simply and sincerely spoken, is sure to stimulate and help those who hear it. We are confident it will enrich them. May we have your contribution?

Adapted from the invitation sent to essayists featured in the original 'This I Believe' series. Excerpted from 'This I Believe 2,' copyright © 1954 by Simon and Schuster.

This I Believe EssayListen to and Read Awesome Samples ‘This I Believe Essays’:

Self-Discovery in High School: http://thisibelieve.org/essay/66769/1

Stress During Junior Year of High School: http://thisibelieve.org/essay/46642/

The Power to Forget: http://thisibelieve.org/essay/1856/

Click here to read a former student's exceptional "This I Believe" essay that I provide as inspiration for your own.Click here to read an example of a student who chose to write the creative "This I Believe" essay.

Browse more essays by theme: Browse essays by theme: http://thisibelieve.org/themes/

GUIDELINES: Since this course focuses on learning about cultural beliefs, values, and behaviors of people in various places and times, I would like for you to consider your deepest beliefs and how they shape your values and behaviors.

Word Count: Write a personal essay of no fewer than 300 words and no more than 500 words. Include word count at bottom of page

Structure: Your finished essay should be replete with an original title, credo, introduction, support for thesis, and conclusion (please stay away from formulaic five-paragraph structure….I want to see who you are as a person and a writer!)

Tone: On one hand, this essay is informal in that it is intended to be read aloud. Tone should be prevalent. If you have to write a fragment or two, so be it, as long as it has to do with tone and not mistakes.

Formality: On the other hand, this essay is formal in that you should not use slang, profanity, or "text-speak" and should capitalize "I" and the first letter of every sentence.

Tell a story about you: Be specific. Take your belief out of the ether and ground it in the events that have shaped your core values. Consider moments when belief was formed or tested or changed. Think of your own experience, work, and family, and tell of the things you know that no one else does. Your story need not be heart-warming or gut-wrenching—it can even be funny—but it should be real. Make sure your story ties to the essence of your daily life philosophy and the shaping of your beliefs.

Name your belief: If you can’t name it in a sentence or two, your essay might not be about belief. Also, rather than writing a list, consider focusing on one core belief.

Be positive: Write about what you do believe, not what you don’t believe. Avoid statements of religious dogma, preaching, or editorializing.

Be personal: Make your essay about you; speak in the first person. Avoid speaking in the editorial “we.” Tell a story from your own life; this is not an opinion piece about social ideals. Write in words and phrases that are comfortable for you to speak. I recommend you read your essay aloud to yourself several times, and each time edit it and simplify it until you find the words, tone, and story that truly echo your belief and the way you speak.

Format Choices:You may complete the assignment in one of the two following ways:

o Adhere to the guidelines provided for this essay project by Murrow in the following invitation to write a “This I Believe” essay

o OR you may choose the creative option and create your 300-500 word essay formatted as spoken word poetry or as song lyrics for any genre.

YOUR CREDO:Write a credo of your deepest belief. This credo should sum up your beliefs in a powerful, compelling yet succinct, and straight-forward manner. Your credo serves as your thesis statement for your introduction.

Here are some credos from the “This I Believe” website to give you an idea of what I’m looking for:

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I believe in stories. Stories that live and breathe. Stories that are fruitful and multiply. That create stories within stories. Bring into being stories of my own. I want stories that provoke a powerful response be it tears, laughter, or thought. I desire a story to have a gravity of its own. If it’s not worth telling more than once, it’s not worth telling. It should continue to pull me back again and again . . .

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I believe that music is a force that stands and beckons the souls of humans to step out of their secret places. I have seen the power of a guitar’s voice as it draws out the souls of strangers in a crowd from under their superficiality and holds them spellbound as one. I have felt an overwhelming sense of unity fall over a huge crowd of people when the insightful artist reveals his sorrow, his frustration, or his overwhelming joy with a melody.

I believe in closed eyes and dim lighting, in tapping feet, concert halls, and heads carried up and down by the rolling swells of a melody. . .

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I believe in the wisdom of the ages. My happiest place was sitting on my grandmother’s counter, while she was cooking, trying to memorize her cornbread recipe. I would sit on her powder blue carpet and run my fingers over the hand stitches of her many old quilts, while the colored glass hummingbird feeders on her porch made patches of purple and green move slowly around her living room. Her wisdom slipped by so many, but I drank it in like sunlight. . .

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Remember that you must include proper MLA citation for any and all work that is not your own

This I Believe Brainstorming Packet

What Do You Value?DIRECTIONS: Read each value, and write the first thing you think of in relation to that value. This is called free association.

Honesty: ___________________________ Integrity: __________________________3

Compassion: ________________________

Love: ______________________________

Empathy: __________________________

Respect: ___________________________

Faith: ______________________________

Knowledge: _________________________

Wisdom: ___________________________

Freedom: ___________________________

Creativity: __________________________

Dedication: _________________________

Loyalty: ____________________________

Success: ____________________________

Cooperation:________________________

Enthusiasm: ________________________

Self-Control: ________________________

Skill: ______________________________

Leadership: _________________________

Confidence: ________________________

Sincerity: ___________________________

Reliability: _________________________

Patience: ___________________________

Flexibility: __________________________

Responsibility: _______________________

Hope: ______________________________

Charity: ____________________________

Prudence: ________________________

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Important Moments

DIRECTIONS: Answer the following questions with thoughtful, true, and detailed recollections. Identify at least one value that played a role in this event. These questions are not always easy to answer. Take enough time to think. If you are stuck, ask your teacher, a friend, or someone at home to help you “unglue” your memories!

When did you first realize your family loves you? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

When did you learn that it is better to tell the truth?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

Who was the first person to make you feel invincible?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

When did you realize you could be anything you want to be?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

When did you learn that life isn’t always fair?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________Who taught you that you can’t always get what you want?

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______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

How did you learn about the Tooth Fairy, or other characters?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

Has anyone ever tested your faith?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

Have you ever done something that you regret? What did you learn from that moment? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Connected value(s):_____________________

My STORY—Memory Chart

DIRECTIONS: Fill in the questions with information about one event that you previously described or you can pick a different one.

1. __________________________________________________________ is the event I am describing.

2. It happened when I was ____________________________________________________.

3. Where did it happen? Describe the place _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. ____________________________________________________were the people involved.

5. Close your eyes and picture yourself on that day. List five adjectives that come to mind.____________________________________________________________________________________

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6. When I think back on this day, it makes me feel ______________________________________________________________________________________ inside.

7. I would want to tell people that before this event I thought that _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8. Now, I know that _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

9. Some values that were important to me back then were ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

10. Some values that are important to me now are ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

PICTURE What You BelieveDIRECTIONS: Belief is more than just saying what you think. It’s about acting in a way that supports the belief. Complete this chart with details to help other people understand what this belief means through your eyes. Be prepared to share. Your Belief Statement: _________________________________________________________

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Synonyms (words/phrases that mean that same thing as the belief statement) OR words/phrases associated with this concept.Example: Life is fair.

Even-steven You get out of it as much as you put into it. You get what you deserve.

Paint a picture with words. Describe a scene or image of the belief in action—pictures may be narrative or metaphoric/symbolic.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

List and/or describe stories that show what the belief means. These may be from books, movies, your life, or the lives of others you know or do not know.

Clearing up misconceptions about

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this belief—i.e.,Love conquers all does not mean that you shouldn’t give your daughter an allowance or a really nice gift for no reason at all.

Rules that govern this belief—i.e.,To learn from your mistakes:

1. You need to know when you’ve made a mistake.

2. You need to stop all defensive impulses, etc.

Here are some possible topics for body paragraphs, in addition to the ideas: The memory when you first encountered or learned this belief An example of this belief in fiction (a book or movie) Your observation of this belief in action in real life (someone you know, in the media, or in

history) A common misconception or misunderstanding about this belief and your explanation How this belief will influence your future or a future decision

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