Closer Than My Own Back Yard

1. Text (Sears only; see PDF including Murrow's foreword below)

Closer Than My Own Back Yard

William Sears

It made me think how many times all of us have tilted proffered cups hoping for assurance only to find them empty, too. The more I talk with my fellow man, the more I realize that my hopes are their hopes. That, as eagerly as I, they search for sort of a "holy grail" whose contents can nourish all mankind.

I'm beginning to understand the wisdom of Bacon's words: "If we are to transform the world, we must begin first by transforming ourselves." At the same time I have come to realize that like the search for Maeterhnck's well-known bluebird, happiness is not a matter of geography. I think it is found even closer than my own back yard - within myself. It was a long struggle for me to understand that actually no one loved me. Not my father, mother, wife, or children. I believe that nobody loves you either. What I mean is that people love the qualities that you possess - kindness, understanding, justice. As you add these qualities to your life, their love for you increases; as you lose these qualities, their love for you falls away. What is true of individuals, I think, is true of nations. Respect, allegiance, and devotion are won by moral character. This character can be acquired by men or countries only through a fundamental belief in some great ruling force which can give purpose to their lives. It is no longer unpopular or unscientific to believe in God.

Anyone who lives in the sports world, for instance, recognizes the vital need for authority and an overseeing guidance. When this law of order and authority is traced back to its source it leads finally and inevitably to a belief in God. To me, this is the only true basis for a peaceful and happy life.

True, this Supreme Being may be beyond my definition or description, yet this tremendous force which has been released to the world through all the great religions is a positive thing, I feel, and creates life.

Humbly, before this force, I believe in meditation and prayer. But I believe in active living, too. I believe that I owe it to myself to extract all the throbbing wonder, joy, and thrill out of life - from my profession, from music, the sciences, art, from all created things. In a wonderful, intimate way, the world is mine to fulfill the promise that lies within me. I need only remember one thing: nothing must come between me and my responsibilities to God and my fellow man.

Glory is not his who loves his country, his family, or himself alone; glory is his who loves his kind. This, I believe, has helped me to look upon each dawn as a new adventure, a day wherein I may find the cup that is not empty.

2. PDF image scan of Murrow's "Foreword" followed by Sears