Most every Friday I go to work with tears in my eyes. I know this doesn't make sense -- it is Friday, after all. But at 7:25am, when I am about a half mile away from my school, I always hear the familiar jingle that identifies a new segment of StoryCorps, the NPR program that helps people record their life stories, archiving them to leave a lasting legacy for their families and loved ones. Like a Pavlovian dog, just hearing that jingle gets my tear ducts ready to flow, and like a junkie who knows that showing up to work in tears just doesn't make any sense, I can't help myself. These conversations are just that compelling. Sometimes they're funny, sometimes sad, but they are always a fascinating look into two people's lives and the connection that exist between them. In a world of news that often feels removed, these stories are very real. Birth, death, and love, the essence of human existence, are the most common topics, and these conversations illustrate that n
