A Creed

Some pretty cool and powerful words by a WWI vet

"My Creed" by Dean Alfange

I do not choose to be a common man.

It is my right to be uncommon. I seek opportunity... Not security.

I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and dulled by having the state to dream and build, to fail, and to succeed.

I refuse to barter incentive for a dole. I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence; the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of utopia.

I will not trade freedom for beneficence, nor my dignity for a hand out. I will never cower before any master nor bend to any threat.

It is my heritage to stand erect, proud, and unafraid; to think and act for myself; enjoy the benefits of my creations; and to face the world boldly and say, "This I have done with my own hand, I am a man. I am an American." -

Listen to it here

*Originally published in This Week Magazine. Later printed in The Reader’s Digest, October 1952 and January 1954.