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Joy

10 things that made us smile this week

We've got a delightful roundup of joy for you.

art, animals, kindness

From amazing artists to helpful humans, this week's roundup is full of awesomeness.

Hey all!

We're back with another roundup of joy this week and we've got some sweet, sweet finds. Enjoy!

1. An angel flight attendant went above and beyond for a woman who was anxious about flying.

Delta flight attendant Floyd Dean-Shannon explained to the woman what all the different sounds and movements of the plane were to help ease her anxiety. And when it all got to be too much for her, he sat down in the aisle and held her hand. Incredible customer service and simply beautiful human-to-human understanding. Love to see it. Read the full story here.


2. A man found an abandoned newborn squirrel in his driveway and raised it. Their relationship is flippin' adorable.

@robertsquirrel

From an interview on Newsner who has 30 million followers in 11 languages

Robert T. Squirrel (the "T" stands for "The") has quite the life! He has his own squirrel family now as well—his "wife" Barbara Ann and four youngsters named Peepers, Jeepers, Creepers and Sneekers—who live in his backyard squirrel house. (I know. My heart can't take it, either.)

3. This artist's animal 'portraits' made from foraged, natural materials are absolutely stunning.

animals, wildlife, land art

People are in love with Hannah Bullen-Ryner's ephemeral animal images.

Hanna Bullen-Ryner/Facebook

Hannah Bullen-Ryner creates one of these creatures each day in the fields near her apartment in the U.K. and each one seems miraculous. They don't last—they are left shortly after being made to be blown away by the elements—but she does capture them on camera before they return to nature. See more of Bullen-Ryner's ephemeral animal portraits and learn more about her process here.

4. Actor F. Murray Abraham's reaction to the crowd cheering for him is so wholesome.

Abraham gained recognition playing Antonio Salieri in the 1984 film "Amadeus," a role for which he won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, but he's not exactly a "household name" kind of actor. He is a prolific film, television and stage performer, however, and it's so sweet to see a career actor like him be so excited for fans to cheer him on.

5. Elementary students led the charge to raise $300,000 for inclusive playground equipment for their classmates.

Dang it, where is that box of tissues? What a wonderful story of support and inclusivity. Read the full story here.

6. Plain White T's singer surprises Delilah, who has been fighting cancer for four years, with her favorite song.

Such a special gift from Tom Higgenson. The power of music truly can't be underestimated.

7. Man shares his sweet story of how he built his entire family from a single dollar bill.

Swipe through to see the dollar bill framed. Awww. Anyone else want to see this rom-com?

8. Women are finding inspiration in this picture of Jamie Lee Curtis and Michelle Yeoh at the Golden Globes.

Jamie Lee Curtis, Michelle Yeoh, Golden Globes, women

Erin Gallagher's post on LinkedIn about women hyping women has gone viral all over social media.

www.linkedin.com

"Ladies, this is your vibe for 2023: unabashed hype woman," wrote Erin Gallagher as the opening of an empowering post about women supporting other women's successes instead of seeing one another as competition. It's an awesome read inspired by an awesome moment. Check it out here.

9. Four guys, one guitar and an awesome cover of Queen's 'Another One Bites the Dust'

These guys are too fun. And that voice! Dang. See more of Adam and the Metal Hawks on Instagram.

10. Do we need to see a baby kangaroo hug its mama? Yes, yes we do.

That's just pure oxytocin right there.

Hope that brought you some much-needed joy!

Did you know you can get these roundups of joy delivered to your inbox each week by signing up for our free newsletter, The Upworthiest? Subscribe here.

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The overview effect makes man’s squabbles with one another seem incredibly petty and presents the planet as it truly is, one interconnected organism.

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But people have been finding a way to revamp their normal closets to look like they were custom built and it's for a price tag that will make your budget happy. The Target bookshelf hack has been going viral on TikTok for several months as new people discover the trend and post their own before and after videos.

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Science

A juice company dumped orange peels in a national park. Here's what it looks like now.

12,000 tons of food waste and 21 years later, this forest looks totally different.


In 1997, ecologists Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs approached an orange juice company in Costa Rica with an off-the-wall idea.

In exchange for donating a portion of unspoiled, forested land to the Área de Conservación Guanacaste — a nature preserve in the country's northwest — the park would allow the company to dump its discarded orange peels and pulp, free of charge, in a heavily grazed, largely deforested area nearby.

One year later, one thousand trucks poured into the national park, offloading over 12,000 metric tons of sticky, mealy, orange compost onto the worn-out plot.

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Joy

Teen with autism makes record-breaking Jenga block tower, inspiring Hallmark holiday movie

15-year-old Auldin Maxwell, who stacked an astonishing 1,840 Jenga pieces all on one single block, says using them helps tap into his creativity.

Canva

Maxwell hold two Jenga-realted world records

At the ripe old age of fifteen, Auldin Maxwell is already breaking world records and inspiring Hallmark movies.

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Only four months later, he broke his own record by stacking 1,400 Jenga blocks onto one vertical block, more than doubling the original amount. He then broke the record for most Jenga GIANT blocks (500) stacked on top of a single vertical Jenga GIANT block.

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Internet

Are women actually quiet quitting their marriages? Women say not so much.

Men are often blindsided by their partner filing for divorce while women prepare for months.

Photo by Eric Ward on Unsplash

Women push back on claim they're quiet quitting their marriage

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Except, Newsweek's article and accompanying video are implying that the quiet quitting of a marriage is more prevalent for the woman in marriages. Statistics are pretty indisputable—nearly 70% of divorces are initiated by women and men, according to the article are often blindsided by the filing.

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Family

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