An Open Letter to the President and CEO of Costco

This is amazing.

http://www.thepointradio.org/point-blog/entry/37/17037

Fairy tales

I think my girls would appreciate this. <3

http://thehairpin.com/2013/06/six-fairy-tales-for-the-modern-woman/

The 30 happiest facts of all time

READ THIS.  It is the best. 
Especially you, Jamila.  Praying that you see some hopefulness in the world today.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/the-happiest-facts-of-all-time

Kindness shown in responses to bombing

So beautiful.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/16/boston-marathon-explosions-reactions-that-give-us-hope_n_3093299.html?utm_hp_ref=impact&ir=Impact

http://www.usatoday.com/story/gameon/2013/04/15/boston-marathon-blast-help/2086273/

Men speaking out on behalf of women

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/male-voices-speak-out-to-end-violence-against-women/2013/04/01/ba5a1296-9aff-11e2-a941-a19bce7af755_story.html?wpmk=MK0000202

Coexistence

In a world where religious differences cause major division and in a country where religion is a primary factor of identity, a small town in Indonesia has been able to find a way to coexist respectfully. Hindus, Muslims and Christians live together in this town and have learned to love each other and make sacrifices to allow the others to worship in their own faith. Muslims have silenced the call to prayer for the silent Hindu New Year and Christians have celebrated their Good Friday early in the day to allow the mid-day Friday prayers maintain regularity for Muslims.
In the US, religion is not often a primary identifying factor... but there are other identifiers. Could there be communities with mixed racial and economic status?

88 Years Young

 Dance On!

purposeful penguin

this is not strictly "good news about the world," but I do hope it makes you laugh anyway.  :)

collaborative consumption

 A really inspiring story about intentional living:

"A Berlin family of three has been living on practically nothing but love and the goodwill of others for more than two years and counting—not as a victims of the rough economy, but as activists who are on a money strike to protest what they call our 'excess-consumption society.'”

 “Money is hampering our dreams. Most people have forgotten it, or are completely afraid of living without money, so they are enslaved by the monetary system,” he said. “I hope to motivate people to believe a little more in their dreams.”

http://shine.yahoo.com/financially-fit/family-lives-without-money--by-choice--and-thrives--190436599.html

Newborn Photos at 13

 

The family was sitting around the dinner table last month, when Higgins – a professional photographer – mentioned that she was preparing for an upcoming baby photo session. Latrell mentioned that he wished he had baby photos of himself.

Higgins’ 12-year-old daughter asked, why not “recreate” a newborn photo shoot just for Latrell? The family had a good laugh thinking about him in all the newborn poses.

“I thought it was funny and that it would be a good idea,” Latrell said.

Read More!
Adoptive mom's 'newborn' photo shoot with 13-year-old son goes viral 

amazing pictures of an incredible world

http://www.socialphy.com/posts/images-pics/16950/the-top-50-pictures-of-the-year.html

"Love in Action on Valentine's Day"

People from around the world will unite to show some love on the day of love.

http://sojo.net/magazine/2013/02/love-action-valentines-day

Reverse Thinking

A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward.

This video reads the exact opposite backwards as forward.

Not only does it read the opposite, the meaning is the exact opposite.

And I think it's an excellent example of how our mindsets can change to prepare ourselves for a better future.


This video is titled "Lost Generation"

Trolling Jesus and an Introspective Pastor

I came across this article today, and while it is a difficult one to read, I think there is a lot of hope in it, as well.

Pastor Sammy Adebiyi is very blunt and real in how he writes about his experience with an internet troll calling himself "Jesus", and how that effected his sermon on homosexuality.


The Gay Community and That One Time Jesus Called Me the ‘N-word’

Moving Mountains

His name is Dashrath Manjhi.  He was born into a poor labourer family in Gahlour village near Gaya in Bihar, India. He lived there with his wife, Falguni Devi, until she died due to lack of medical treatment because the nearest town with a doctor was 43 miles (70 km) away from their village.

Dashrath did not want anyone else to suffer the same fate as his wife, so he carved through the rock of a mountain by hand.  Working day and night for 22 years, this road reduced the distance between the Atri and Wazirganj blocks of the Gaya district from 75 km to 1 km.

He died on August 17, 2007, with the hope of creating a metalled road through that passage.

Immigration progress

Not exactly sure I agree with the Ameri-centric tone here, but it looks like some progress might be made!!
:-D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEMkFoEq3Ac&feature=youtu.be

Athletes stop bullying

http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/8579599/chy-johnson-boys

A different way of doing justice

"No walls, no barbed wire and no guards.  At the prison island of Bastoy in the fjord of Olso the director places his emphasis on trust and humanity. The prisoners are required to take responsibility. Norwegians are proud of their liberal prison system. And the statistics seem to back up the approach. Only 10 percent of inmates go on to reoffend."

What Love Means To a 4-8 Year Old

Slow


  down for three minutes to read this. Itis so worth it.
 

   Touching words
  from the mouth of babes.. 

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of
  4 to 8 year-olds ,

'What does love mean?'

The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could
  have imagined

See what you think:

'When
  my grandmother got arthritis , she couldn't bend over and
  paint her toenails anymore.. So my grandfather does it for her
all the time , even when his hands got arthritis too. That's
  love.'

Rebecca- age 8



'When someone
  loves you , the way they say your name is different.
You
  just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
Billy - age 4



'Love is when a girl
  puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go
  out and smell each other.'

Karl - age 5
 



'Love is when you go out to eat and give
somebody most of your French fries without making them give
  you any of theirs.'

Chrissy - age 6
 



'Love is what makes you smile when you're
  tired.'
Terri - age 4



'Love is when my
  mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before
  giving it to him , to make sure the taste is OK.'
 
Danny - age 7



'Love is when you kiss
  all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing , you still
want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are
  like that.
They look gross when they kiss'

Emily -
  age 8



'Love is what's in the room with you at
  Christmas if you stop opening presents
And  listen.'
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)



'If you want to
  learn to love better , you should start with a friend who you
  hate , '

Nikka - age 6 
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet) 


'Love
  is when you tell a guy you like his shirt , then he wears it
  everyday.'

Noelle - age 7



'Love is
like a little old woman and a little old man who are still
  friends even after they know each other so well.'
 

Tommy - age 6



'During my piano recital
  , I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the
  people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
  He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared
  anymore.'

Cindy - age 8



'My mommy
  loves me more than anybody
You don't see anyone else
kissing me to sleep at night.'

Clare - age 6
 



'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece
  of chicken.'

Elaine-age 5



'Love is
  when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is
handsomer than Robert Redford .'

Chris - age 7
 



'Love is when your puppy licks your face even
  after you left him alone all day.'

Mary Ann - age 4
 


'I know my older sister loves me
because she
  gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new
  ones.'

Lauren - age 4



'When you love
  somebody , your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come
  out ofyou.'(what an image)

Karen - age 7
 



'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet
  and she doesn't think it's gross..'

Mark - age 6
 



'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless
  you meanit. But if you mean it , you should say it a lot.
  People forget.'

Jessica - age 8
And the final one
 

The winner was a four year old child whose next door
  neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry , the little boy went
  into the old gentleman's yard , climbed onto his lap , and
  just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said
  to the neighbor , the little boy said ,
'Nothing , I just helped him cry'

Two Amazing People

Aaron "Wheelz" Fotheringham landed the world's first double backflip on a wheelchair on August 26, 2010

Nick Vijicic inspires others to believe in their own self worth

Love survives lost memory

http://www.npr.org/2012/12/14/167187734/for-man-with-amnesia-love-repeats-itself

Statistics Can Be Decieving

I did something unusual this week.  I went with a couple of friends to a local counseling center to hear two passionate women explain their work, and I want to share with you what I learned...

According to FBI statistics, one out of every three marriages int he US has at least one incident of domestic violence.  ...there are four of us girls writing this blog, and at this point we're all thinking of getting married.  That is an astoundingly high statistic.  A statistic that makes me shrink and the world grow up around me.

One in three.



We first heard about First Step, an organization that offers shelter and relief for any person in a violent domestic relationship.  Several times this phrase was repeated, "No person should have to live with violence or the fear of violence in their lives." 

But not only is there relief for persons who are abused, but there is also relief for the abusers, as well.  That alone is reason for rejoicing!

Next, we heard about Center for Marriage and Family Counseling, where any person is welcome to participate in the group therapy sessions.  I can't remember what the statistic is, however this specific therapy is known to be an excellent process where many people complete the program feeling as if they've learned more about themselves and others--about empathy.



My question then was, because this is a good program, has the one in three statistic decreased at all?

Well, no.  The answer is that no, the statistic hasn't changed.

However, more people are talking about domestic violence now.  It's becoming less taboo.  If victims feel as if they'll still be accepted, believed, and loved if they admit what happened, then more people will seek help.  The same thing for offenders, as well.  If offenders believe that they will not be judged or abandoned if they seek help, then perhaps more people will seek help before a problem arises.

So, no, the statistic is the same.  But if more people are telling their story and seeking help, then more people are adding their voices to the others who have already done so and changed.  So, even though the pool of people from which the statistic is gathered is growing, the statistic remains the same.  The situation is indeed changing!



This gives me hope.  I've grown up with so many statistics, but there is more story behind the numbers.  Don't be burdened by heavy fractions, but seek out the stories, the faces, the "what can we do at this moment?"  I think in doing this, we will keep a goal that is more full of truth--a goal that we can touch.

Collections of hope

http://imgur.com/gallery/V96MLTZ

Bringing down a dictator: OTPOR

Youth are powerful. If you do not know this, then take note. A decade ago a group of Serbian youth led the completely non-violent social movement that overthrew a dictator. 


"Their weapons were rock concerts and ridicule, the internet and email, spray-painted slogans and a willingness to be arrested. Otpor students became the shock troops in an army of human rights, pro-democracy, anti-war, women’s groups, and opposition political parties."

http://www.aforcemorepowerful.org/films/bdd/index.php

Israel Loves Iran

Faced with a politicized reality and the fear of war, one Isreali graphic designer took it upon himself to share a message of love - and it has gone viral!

http://www.israelovesiran.com/

Tragedy turned to hope

Check out this story about how one girl's dream to help others became a reality, even after she was gone.

http://imgur.com/gallery/824G5

The good news network

I just found an entire website dedicated to good news stories. Specifically compelling stories to be posted later. :)

http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/

An axis of joy

I cannot believe that the inscrutable universe turns on an axis of suffering; surely the strange beauty of the world must somewhere rest on pure joy! - Louise Bogan