And now, This I Believe. The living philosophies of thoughtful men and women presented in the hope they may strengthen your beliefs so that your life may be richer, fuller, happier. Here is Edward R. Murrow

This I Believe. Helen Winston is a young motion picture actress. She was born in Canada, studied at the Academy of Radio Arts and began her acting career with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. When she was 20 she came to Hollywood where she worked as a waitress, a publicity writer, a receptionist and on an evening shift in a market.

There she eventually found her place in the movie industry and has now appeared in over 30 films, including MGM’s “Battle Circus” and Paramount’s “Botany Bay.” She is currently forming her own company for packaging live and filmed television shows. Here now is Helen Winston.

Taught to believe in the brotherhood of man, I had no conception of God or God’s meaning until I went to kindergarten. There a schoolteacher explained that God does everything for us. Several days later on my way home from school, I saw a man all dressed in white picking papers up off the street. I ran home and excitedly confronted my mother with the news that I had just seen God.

‘What makes you think that’s God?’ she questioned. ‘Well,’ I explained, ‘Teacher says God does everything for us, and here he is picking up other people’s dirty papers.’ Perhaps at the tender age of 5, I was not all wrong. I have learned that there is a little godliness in everyone.

As a youngster, I always aspired to be an actress. I realized that if I became an actress, I could subordinate my personality and assume the identity of the role I was going to play. I felt I could encompass more of the essence of living by experiencing, even vicariously, the reactions to life of different people. Armed with the conviction that anything a person is capable of conceiving in his mind he is capable of realizing, I set out to attain my goal.

As a sort of internship, I took a job as a waitress in order to study people. I found that most familiar old proverbs affecting people are true: that most people, perhaps unconsciously, try to satisfy an inner virtuous impulse. I discovered I met no strangers, that each individual reflected a part of myself. I obtained three simultaneous part-time jobs in the motion picture industry and studied whenever I could to be prepared for my eventual opportunities, believing in the old maxim: It’s who you know that gets you there and what you know that keeps you there.

I know I am happy, having found emotional security in the hearts of my friends and loved ones, and spiritual security in every impressive second.

Most young people live for their future plans; older people reminisce in the past. Too few realize the quintessence of life is living for the present. Each waking moment can be so precious, filled with love and understanding, filled with the awareness of beauty, filled with the adventure of discovery and recognition.

Each person has his own pattern for living and success. No matter which goal I am striving for, I try to accomplish at least one purposeful deed towards that end each day. And as I move closer to the summit, my horizon expands with each step upward. People begin to take on equally the qualities shared by all mankind. Problems become incidental to the picture as a whole.

I get a clearer and more complete outlook on many things. Some say life is transition. I know my goals, upon realization, will continue to change. No doubt, my beliefs will too. But at the moment, this I believe: There are many seeds for a successful life, for one’s own complete development, which is perhaps the purpose of our existence. A few of the seeds I have discovered are faith, thought, awareness, and love.

There the beliefs of Helen Winston whose faith and considerable hard work sustained her aspirations to become an actress.