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Middle schoolers in New Hampshire create adorable mini boat that sails all the way to Norway

The project was part of a very unique program designed to "connect students around the world." Mission accomplished.

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The Rye Riptide washed up on the shores of Norway.

This story brings a whole new meaning to the word friendshipship.

In October 2020, the middle schoolers of Rye Junior High, in Rye, New Hampshire, bid a bon voyage to their handmade mini-boat, which set sail off the coast of New Hampshire to who-knows-where.

Measuring only 5.5 feet, the “Rye Riptides” was indeed a small ship. It ran crewless, but carried a bountiful cargo of colorful artwork made by students, along with a GPS tracking device that reported the boat’s location … sometimes.

Cut to 462 days and 8,300 miles later, and what started out as a simple science project became a surprise discovery for some Norwegian sixth graders, and a fun new connection across the Atlantic.

Rye Junior High had partnered with Educational Passages, a nonprofit organization that aims to connect students around the world to the ocean and each other. Once the kit arrived, the kids started building while learning about ocean currents, science and math. However, science teacher Sheila Adams shares that the more artistic, right-brained activities equally found their way into the curriculum. “The students needed to use their writing skills to inform others about their mini-boat project, describe our school and town to people of other languages, just in case, and write requests to get the boat deployed,” she said in a release.

 educational passages, norway, message in a bottle, education programs, school, middle school, positive news Behold, the Rye Riptides miniboat.  scontent-lga3-3.xx.fbcdn.net  

COVID-19 nearly threatened to knock the Rye Riptides off its course. The boat had been constructed, but not yet decorated, when students were moved to taking class online. Then, there was the matter of launching the boat. Which Cassie Stymiest, director of Educational Passages, noted was “challenging with all the restrictions in place.”

Luckily, creativity, resourcefulness and a little technology saved the day. Working remotely, each piece of art was done at home, then scanned, printed and made into a collage. Then, Ms. Stymiest connected with the Sea Education Association (SEA), which set the Rye Riptides on its journey.

Would the boat make it to Europe? Rye student Solstice Reed wasn’t so sure. “Honestly, I thought it would sink,” she admitted to the Portsmouth Herald. Considering the boat was cruising the ocean waters during hurricane season, the skepticism was well-founded. During the more tumultuous periods, the GPS signal only came in intermittently. And for a long while, there was nothing but radio silence.

But then, at long last, on the small Norwegian island of Smøla, the Rye Riptides successfully made it to dry land. Sure, it was a bit dismantled and covered in barnacles, but inside, all the adorable trinkets remained intact. The Smøla students peered with wonder into their bounty of photos, signed facemasks, fall leaves, acorns and state quarters, gifts sent out almost two years ago.

Isn't your inner child just squealing with delight right now?

The voyage of the small boat went viral in a big way, sailing across social media, and making headlines.

  - YouTube  www.youtube.com  

Human connection found its way across the sea in the most wholesome and magical way. It’s really cool to see that educational programs like this exist, impacting both the hearts and minds of young students. Mission, successful.

To help support Educational Passages on even more wholesome adventures just like this one, consider donating here.

This article originally appeared three years ago.

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Big brother steps in for his sister's father-daughter dance and then steals the show

“I don't know if he knows what an impact he's making as her big brother, but she'll never forget this.”

@patrice_thomps/Instagram

Best brother ever.

Even for the parents who prioritize showing up for their kids, missing a child's event now and then might be unavoidable. But certain occasions are more painful than others when a parent can’t show up, and fatherless father-daughter dances undoubtedly fall into this category.

In June 2024, six-year-old Harper was nearly put in this situation when her dad couldn’t show up to her dance studio's annual summer showcase—which normally includes a father-daughter dance—because of a work commitment.

Thankfully, her 14-year-old brother Micah is the coolest brother in the world, and stepped up to take her dad’s place so she wouldn’t miss out.

In a mega-viral video posted to Instagram by Harper and Micah’s mom, Patrice Thompson, we see the duo have a blast as they twirl in circles, fist bump, and end with an adorable lift for their “Barbie and Ken” themed routine.

“Core memory for the team today,” Thompson wrote in the caption. “I don't know if he knows what an impact he's making as her big brother, but she'll never forget this.”

 

Micah didn’t just have an impact on Harper. So many people left comments sharing how impressed and moved they were by his kindness.

“In a world of boys he is a gentleman,” one person wrote, referencing a Taylor Swift lyric.

Another offered a touching truth, writing, “As a man whose dad walked away from me, this makes me so emotional. You are raising your son to be the cycle breaker. He won’t end up repeating cycles of toxic masculinity like so many of the men we see today. he will be a better man. And his little sister will grow up knowing what a real man should be like, because she has her big brother to show her."

One comment commended Micah for stepping out of his comfort zone, saying, “Bless his sweet heart. I know how big that is for a 14 year old to put himself out there. Major props!”

“Watching him lift her up at the end got me i can’t lie i teared up 🥲🥲” another shared.

“As a girl who had my older brother participate in my “father-daughter” dances for drill team in high school, this made me soo emotional! 😭 this is a special moment they will remember forever,” reminisced another.

And perhaps the best (and truest) comment of them all, was this one: “Does your son know he's a legend?”

In an interview with Newsweek, Thompson shared that while she is “so proud” of her son, especially since most boys his age “would rather do anything else than perform a routine in front of their peers and during summer when he could be off with friends.” However, she is “not super surprised” that he what he did. “That's the young man he is!" she exclaimed, adding “he truly understands the meaning of being selfless."

To all the brothers who would show up for their siblings in this way—thank you. Your generosity and compassion really do help make the world a better place, and it doesn’t go unnoticed.

Here's the family all together: Mom, Dad, Micah, Harper, and the newest addition born earlier this year, baby Christian. Hopefully the new baby boy knows he won the sibling lottery.

This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.

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Joy

A Black woman and white man share a refreshing exchange and it offers healing for us all

She expected the worst when a white man approached her overheated vehicle. But what she received instead brought her to tears.

@realbillygotti/Instagram

We need more moments like these.

Of course, racism and hatred are very real issues, and ones that we must discuss in order to make progress. But with all the coverage of people behaving badly flooding our awareness through the media and online, it can be easy to write off humanity entirely. To believe that the world is inherently a divisive, dangerous, and ultimately declining place to live. When in reality, not everything is so bleak.

That’s what makes sharing this story so important.

In December of 2023, a Black woman named Jo'lee Shine was stuck in her overheated car in front of a stranger's house, waiting for a tow truck to arrive.

racism, karens, wholesome moments, southern hospitality, kindness, atlantaJo’lee preparing for the worst. @realbillygotti/Instagram

When a white man, the homeowner, began approaching her, Jo'lee immediately started recording the interaction. And thank goodness she did, because this was a moment worth immortalizing.

“I'm so sorry, my car ran hot,” she says in the clip, and begins trying to start the car to prove her situation.

And then, in the sweetest southern accent you ever heard, we hear “don’t try to crank it baby.”

When then hear him offer to put water in the car, made sure Jo'lee had coming to pick her up, and then…wait for it…asked if she wanted lunch.

"We’ll be eating lunch shortly. While we wait on [the tow truck] if we get everything set up I’ll come get you and we’ll have dinner,” he says.

This brings Jo’lee to instant tears. “That was so sweet,” she whimpers.

racism, karens, wholesome moments, southern hospitality, kindness, atlantaJo’lee in tears after being invited to share a meal. @realbillygotti/Instagram

With a chuckle, the man replies, “that’s the way we are.” he then shared how he just had 22 people over at his house the night before for “a family gathering.”

Jo’lee declines the lunch offer, but profusely thanks the kind stranger as she wipes the tears that continue to fall. Just before he goes, the man says that he’ll check back in, joking that the tow truck “might be delayed” and she might change her mind.

In her caption, Jo’lee wrote, “I wasn’t going to post this, but I wanted people to know that they’re still good people in this world.”

Seems like that mission was accomplished. The video, which has gotten over 176,000 likes on Instagram, gave everyone a little dose of hope. Just take a look at some of these lovely comments:

“This is who we are...it sucks that movies have put fear in people to that level. That makes me sad that there's fear and division keeping us all from sharing love that I KNOW is in all of us.”

“The media works to divide us, don't believe their lies. We love all people.. God Bless.”

"I'll come get you when we get dinner on the table?!!" ❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹🔥🔥🔥🔥🙌🙌”

“The way he called you baby without a mean tone in his soul.”

“This renews my faith in humanity. He tried to help her without any thought of race.”

“Just when we think humanity has died, this happens ♥️. Human kindness for the win.”

Indeed, the world has its’ Karens…and even worse characters. But it also has people who invite strangers to dinner, just because it’s a nice thing to do…because it’s the “way they are.” It’s the way a lot of us are, when we let ourselves be.

This article originally appeared two years ago

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Man stuns his friends by calling to tell them goodnight, setting off a wholesome bro trend

"This trend is gonna heal the male loneliness epidemic."

@mirandafaye/TikTok

“Proof men need more platonic love in their lives."

What started out as a silly phone prank has turned into an incredibly wholesome TikTok trend—which some are saying might help heal male loneliness.

On May 16, a woman named Miranda filmed her husband calling a few of his buddies just to wish them goodnight. As you can probably expect, the dudes were quite stunned.

“Why? Are you thinking of me for real?” one says, flabbergasted. “God damn I love you too […] I don’t know what to say; you caught me off guard.”

“Uhhhhh…excuse me? Sweet dreams?” asked another, in shock.

The clip quickly went mega viral, racking up three million views. But more importantly, viewers agreed that it actually filled a very real need.

“Proof men need more platonic love in their lives,” wrote one person

Another added, “This is gonna heal the male loneliness epidemic.”

Pretty soon, the trend caught on, with all kinds of guys calling their bros to wish them a good night. Sure, it’s funny to watch—the “WTF?” reactions are pretty priceless—but also undeniably sweet in its own way.

 
 @beefingwiththeblacks Should he post the other ones..? 😬😅😂 @Juss_inTimeHD🦎⏰ @Josh Mukendi @callmeCollins.h.d.c IB: @Sammy D #couplescomedy #friends #homeboy #goodnight #sleeptight #bedtime #sweetdreams ♬ original sound - Mr&MrsBlack 
 
 


 
 @sydsacks I’ve been cracking up at this trend so I made Peter call his besties to say goodnight 🤪 #goodnight #besties ♬ original sound - syd 
 
 


 
 @wendyxjason Goodnight trend had me balling - proud of our friends ❤️😭 #goodnighttrend #goodnightprank #fypシ ♬ original sound - WendyxJason 
 
 

Even celebrities have hopped on board. Boxer Jake Paul filmed himself wishing a goodnight to streamer Adin Ross. Meanwhile, Washington Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil called up his NFL teammates Jayden Daniels and Sam Hartman, who called him “bonkers.”

 
 @selianacarvalho At least they were all concerned 😭 #nfl #commanders #httc #funny ♬ original sound - Seli 
 
 

With each new video, new comments supporting the trend came rolling in as well.

“NORMALIZE THIS TYPE OF MALE BEHAVIOR.””

“My favorite trend.”

“I’m convinced this trend is gonna save someone’s life when they’re at their lowest.”

And perhaps this theory isn’t so far off. After all, men in the US, especially those under 35, have been ranked as the loneliest demographic in the entire world, according to a recent Gallup poll. This is due to a variety of societal factors, including both the expectation for men to be strong and independent (i.e. misunderstood stoicism), as well as the encouragement for men to focus on money and success rather than building close friendships.

Add to that an increasingly more digital world, which has led many men to seek belonging in, as psychotherapist Justin Yong put it in his interview with Fortune Well, “toxic digital occupiers like gaming and porn.” This "manosphere," as many call it, might give a “short term dopamine hit,” but ultimately “replaces real intimacy and acts as a barrier to being vulnerable to how they might be feeling,” he explained.

So, call it a frivolous viral trend, but it could also be a sign to give your homie a call tonight. It could help build much needed human connection, or, at the very least, it’ll give you a good laugh.

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