I love books. Reading has always been a way for me to recharge. Whenever I am feeling overwhelmed or upset. Whenever I have time to spare or am having a really good day, I usually end up at Half Price Books. This summer, on one of my many trips there, I found a book titled This I Believe. Which is based on a segment in NPR’s All Things Considered. The book contains short essays from eighty people, in which they state their personal philosophies. It is one of the best books I have stumbled upon in my random bookstore browsing.
As I began to flip through the essays, I was immediately struck by the wide array of beliefs expresed within those pages. People took this opportunity to explain their belief in good deeds or silent walks or as Sarah Adams said, that we should “Be cool to the pizza dude”. I spent the summer reading what people believed to be at the core of who they are and how they try to live, and their explanations for how they came to believe what they do. I was fascinated by the exercise. The process of whittling all of the pieces and events that make you who you are and have shaped your worldview down to one belief statement. The assertion that this belief is the foundation for every interaction that you have. That this belief is at the center of who you are.
This book has been in the back of mind ever since I picked it up. I have been wondering if I were to make a belief statement. As far as I can figure, there are two interconnected beliefs at the core of my being. First, I believe in presence. I believe in being where you are. That sometimes the most profound act of service and love we can ever do is to be present with someone. I believe that when I am fully here, not only can I see others more clearly; I can clearly see God moving. I also believe in appreciation. In appreciating the moment. Appreciating the ride. In appreciating those in my life for the many ways that they bless me on my journey each and everyday. Appreciating the quiet moments of refuge in a cluttered bookstore and the books that change everything. This I believe.