This piece, from Chicago Public Radio freelancer Lisa Matuska, captures one girl's dreams about playing soccer, but also illuminates what many Americans take for granted — that girls have lots of opportunities to play.

Like most public radio sports stories, it's about more than the game, of course. Run it when you want something about youth leadership, progress in less-developed countries, female empowerment. Or, simply, at the beginning of kids' soccer season!

A first-person piece that reveals how writing helps this veteran deal with his feelings. His thoughts unfold slowly and carefully.

A few sentences will be hard for your listeners to forget: "I was a normal person exposed to abnormal conditions," "I'm a thinker, not a feeler," and "you have to trust this 18-year-old kid to shoot over your head versus shoot the back of the head."

This was produced by Sarah Wilson while she was at the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies.

Double interview with the optimistic theme of growing the green economy as a "win-win." These two people are worth getting to know:

Environmental activist Majora Carter's energy and enthusiasm come through nicely, as she takes the listener through her childhood, where the seeds of her environmentalism started, to her adult professional activities.

Van Jones is founding president of Green For All and a senior fellow with the Center for American Progress. And he's the author of "The Green Collar Economy." His take on the green economy is thoughtful and approachable, and there's a warm tone in his answers.

This piece is current and your listeners will come away from it educated, buoyed, and maybe even delighted that they can hear about environmental concerns without a doomsday sort of overtone.