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10 things that made us smile this week

Bringing you the internet's most smile-worthy finds.

female friends, cheerleaders, dad and daughter making coffee

@sruetercreates/Instagram, @magenreaves/Instagram, @sailorkinsley/TikTok

From friendship to sportsmanship to macchiato whip, this week's 10 things are smile-worthy.

Hey ho, happy humans!

It's that wonderful time of the week again, when we round up 10 of the internet's most smile-worthy finds to share with you all. And this week's list does not disappoint.

We've got celebrations of friendship, the kindness of Martin Short and Disneyland's Evil Queen, Drew Barrymore and Pink talking candidly about motherhood, U.S. presidents with mullets, the cutest barista ever and more.

The more people find reasons to smile, the better our world will be, so don't forget to share the joy. Off we go!

1. This is much, much better than the 'dirty art' people usually leave on rear windshields…

\u201cDirty art.. \ud83d\udc4c\u201d
— Buitengebieden (@Buitengebieden) 1677420702

Can you imagine coming back to your car and finding this? I'd never be able to wash it. The rain would have to do it for me.

2. Woman shares the power of platonic love in a sweet celebration of friendship

See on Instagram

There are many kinds of love, and we create unnecessary limitations if we view every close emotional bond through the lens of romance or sex. Yay for platonic love and genuine friendship.

3. Disneyland's Evil Queen shows she actually is fairest of them all, making an autistic boy feel welcome

@magicwiththomas
The not so Evil Queen offering him to feel her cape #autism #autismawareness #autismacceptance #asd #specialneeds #disney #disneyparks #disneyland #disneytiktok #disney100 #snowwhite #evilqueen #fyp #foryoupage

Autistic kids have different sensory needs and preferences, and this queen seems to know how to connect with Thomas by inviting him to feel her cape. Disney magic at its best. Read the full story here.

4. By chance, Chance the Rapper had a kindness run-in with the legendary Martin Short

Chance the Rapper, Martin Short

Chance the Rapper had a chance encounter with the kind Martin Short.

Upworthy/Facebook

Chance the Rapper boarded a flight with his 7-year-old daughter, Kensli, when he realized their seats weren't together. A man immediately offered up his seat so they could sit together, and then Chance realized it was the legendary comedic actor Martin Short. Chance said he didn't think Short even knew who he was—he was just being kind. Read the full story here.

5. The music cut out in the middle of a cheerleading competition, and the crowd immediately stepped in to save the routine

See on Instagram

The counting reaction from the cheerleaders in the crowd was immediate. Talk about awesome sportsmanship.

6. Drew Barrymore and Pink had a couch chat about motherhood that was refreshingly real

So open, so sincere and so wise. Love seeing moms being honest about their fears and struggles. Read the full story here.

7. Cutest barista ever makes coffee with her patient, loving dad

@sailorkinsley
Coffee made by my mini 🫶🏽 #fyp

It's adorable, but also a masterclass in positive parenting. The family's videos demonstrate how letting kids try and letting them make mistakes and messes helps them learn. Read the full story here.

8. Kid's drawing of what 'safe' means to him is just pure 'Awwww'

See on Instagram

Does anyone have tips for when a preschooler's drawing makes you cry all the good tears?

9. All 46 U.S. presidents looking 'cool' with a mullet is the greatest use of AI ever

U.S. presidents mulletts

Barack Obama and Abe Lincoln, but cool and with mullets

Upworthy/Facebook (Images via Cam Harless/Twitter)

As writer Tod Perry quipped, "Barack Obama looking like he played an informant on 'Starsky and Hutch' in 1976." And hello, Babe Lincoln. Check out more mulleted presidents here.

10. Third time's the charm for this adorable joey trying to climb into mama's pouch.

\u201cBaby kangaroo entering its mother's pouch\nhttps://t.co/KSNOpSTFEb\u201d
— Fascinating (@Fascinating) 1677826645

"If at first, you don't succeed," am I right? We've all been there. Next time you fall flat on your face, just remember this baby kangaroo's undeterred perseverance and tell yourself to keep trying.

Hope that brought you some joy! Come back next week for more.

(If you'd like to be notified of these posts each week, sign up for our free newsletter, The Upworthiest, here.)

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People share different thoughts on what makes someone a good friend

The responses show that we prioritize different things in our friendships.

Photo by Sam McNamara on Unsplash

Friendship is an important part of leading a fulfilling life.

According to an October 2023 Pew Research Center report, 61% of adults in the U.S. say that having close friends is an essential part of living a fulfilling life—a far higher percentage than those who say the same about being married (23%), having children (26%) or having a lot of money (24%). The research also found that having more friends is linked to being more satisfied with friendships in general. Approximately 81% of people with five or more close friends share they are "completely" or "very" satisfied with their friendships, while 65% of those with one to four close friends say the same.

But what does being satisfied with friendship even mean? What earns someone the label of "friend"? Or more importantly, what does it mean to be a good friend?

We asked our audience what makes someone a good friend, and the responses were interesting. Naturally, there were some common themes, but people also had some diverse ideas about what's important in a friendship.

Some people shared short, sweet lists of traits that are essential in a friendship:

"Caring, loyal, kind and completely non-judgemental." –Annika B.

"Trustworthy, loyal, supportive, flexible, patient, understanding. Caring." – Jonathan S.

"Kind, helpful, supportive and honest." – Marjorie M.

"Conversation and laughter. Kind and caring." – Kathleen M.

"Unconditional love, laughter, and honesty." – Molly H.

"When you are a better person with them than by yourself. And kindness " – Gillian N.

"They know how to really listen without judging." – Bernadette C.

two women sitting on a couch laughing

Friends laugh together.

Photo by Surface on Unsplash

Others offered a bit more detail:

"Being able to pick up where you left off even if some time has passed and it feels like no time has passed. Someone who will give you straight advice, but love you even if you don't follow it." – Melissa O.

"Someone you can talk honestly with, belly laugh with, but also just sit in silence with…knowing they just get you." – Lori T.

"Someone non judgemental who loves you even when you’ve struggled to love yourself. Someone who loves you unconditionally despite your flaws." – Sue H.

two people hugging

Friends comfort one another.

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 on Unsplash

"Kind, supportive, dependable, wants to spend time together, someone you can laugh and cry with. There on your important days, and in your time of need. And you have to be all those things for them in return." – Della D.

"They get you, allow you to be who you are, laugh with you, cry with you, no matter time or distance - you just pick up where you left off, they back you up - even when you’re not there to defend yourself." – Zan M.

"Honesty, kindness, understanding, ability to disagree without anger, trust, willing to tell each other hard truth with love, forgiveness." – Deborah H.

"They fill a need you have. There are many different kinds of friends. Childhood friends ,School friends, work friends, church friends etc...they all play a special role in your life." – Elizabeth B.

two women with their hands over each other's eyes

Friends don't judge.

Photo by Sam McNamara on Unsplash

And finally, some people offered specific details and personal anecdotes about their friendships:

"Sharing common interest and really caring about each other. listening is very important not just speaking to each other. My best friend of 60 years passed away a couple of years ago and I cannot tell you how much I miss her and her nonjudgmental friendship." – Carole J.

"Someone who supports you publicly and tells you hard truths privately, who cheerleads your successes and empathises your lows, who trusts you and you them. Who loves you flaws and all - but all of this you reciprocate in being a good friend. Time flies together and even after months apart you pick up like it was yesterday. Who you want to tell your big news too and your bad news too first." – Elsa P.

"Has great sense of humour, shared interests & values, compassionate, empathic, kind, doesn’t try to 'fix' me, doesn’t minimize my lived experiences as 'not so bad,' able to listen without judgment, and allows me to be there for them." – Linda H.

three older people walking arm in arm

Friends are there through thick and thin.

Photo by Philippe Leone on Unsplash

"I don’t know, sometimes they just love you, even when you don’t want them too. You have to acknowledge them, they don’t ask for anything just want to be with you. I have a 30 yr friendship because she didn’t give up on me. I came to realize she was more forgiving and accepted me for just me. She’s not too kind, sometimes selfish but she’s there, when you get older you also accept and understand no one is perfect and if you get mad at everyone you might wind up without friends we start dying off or in old age homes. We are who we are, just love each other flaws and all. Annoying things find a way to keep friendship, not awful bad things. You guys know what I mean." – Ney C.

"Someone who knows they can call you at 2 AM, and you can do the same. Someone you house and dog sit for, whose dogs come to greet you when they hear the garage door open and who happily sit on you. Someone that refused to let you pay for Lyft to get to chemotherapy appointments, but took you each time, checked on you afterwards, brought food knowing that you didn’t feel like cooking, visited to talk about all kinds of things, and just was there for you when you were feeling the considerable side effects of chemotherapy." – Yaca A.

We all need people in our lives we can depend on, share our joys and sorrows with, and support in return. And if we have a hard time making friends, we can always rely on the wisdom of preschoolers to remind us of the basic building blocks of friendship.

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