10 things that made us smile this week
Upworthy's weekly roundup of joy and delight from around the internet.

From Jennifer Garner's birthday surprise to good doggos meeting their baby sister, here are 10 things that will make you smile.
Do you ever feel like the world has officially entered hell-in-a-handbasket territory? Like division and hate are dominating and kindness and compassion are dwindling?
I have a strong faith in humanity, but the past handful of years has shaken that faith pretty hard. When I step back, though, I realize that most of my perception about the state of the world is coming from this electronic box in front of me. The nature of my work has me spending lots of time paying close attention to the media and spending lots of time on social media—which can be useful, but which also thrives on viral negativity. It's easy to walk away from a social media scroll session with the perception that people in general are getting worse.
But that's not what the data shows. While there are some serious issues we need to deal with, people in general have been actuallymore excellent to one another. In fact, the World Happiness Report, which uses data from Gallup World Poll, shared that people volunteered, donated and helped strangers 25% more in 2021 than before the pandemic. The report authors called it "a pandemic of benevolence."
Just let that shot of faith in humanity sink in. Don't fight it. It's a good thing, truly. Let's let it be good without trying to explain it away. It's OK to shift our focus from the negative to the positive. It's energizing. It gives us hope. It reminds us that there is always good happening in the world at the same time as the bad.
It's also OK to take a break from the headlines and indulge in some purely feel-good content. Those delightful little doses of endorphins from watching a cute animal or baby video can be just the thing we need to help us through the day. No shame in that game.
Let's celebrate good things large and small with these 10 smile-worthy tidbits from around the interwebs:
Jennifer Garner got the best birthday surprise from her childhood crush, Donny Osmond.
Jennifer Garner's relatability is legendary and totally evidenced in this video. The part where she had to take off her sweater is the best. Such a pure, sweet reaction to a dream come true. Read the full story here.
Cameron the Lyft driver's list of different drives he offers is hilariously genius.
Have you ever gotten into an Uber or Lyft or taxi and wished the driver would either talk more, or talk less, or stop talking, or talk about something else? Cameron lets his passengers choose what kind of ride they get, from the Small Talk Ride to the Therapy Ride to the Funny Ride to the Creepy Ride. One ride even involves bubbles. Read the full story here.
12-year-old raises more than $300,000 for Ukraine with his handmade wooden bowl.
Best story ever. Gabriel Clark's dad shared that his son was feeling down because kids had told him his woodworking habit wasn't cool. That tweet resulted in a flood of support and prompted Gabriel to create a special wooden bowl to raise money to help the children of Ukraine. So many people pulling together to support a sweet kid and those impacted by war. Definitely worth reading the whole story here.
Fox enjoying a little banjo concert in front of a stunning natural backdrop.
I mean, this is just beautiful in every way.
Golden retrievers Winston and Doug meet their baby sister for the first time, and awwww.
@winstonthegoodboygolden Already the best big brothers 💛 I see lots of kisses & toys in Miller’s future! #dogmeetsbaby #petsoftiktok #goldenretriever #feelgood #ComeDanceWithMe
The donut got me.
Potato dog getting a bath.
No reason for sharing this other than it's just so darn cute. Oh, dat belly.
The original video that prompted a viral 'I JUST A BABY!' audio wave is just too much.
@little.blooming.women Did. She. Stutter? #parenting #toddler #toddlersoftiktok
There are a gazillion videos on TikTok using this audio, but nothing compares to the original. These pandemic babies are something else, I tell you. (Also, "I JUST A BABY!!!" is now my excuse for doing anything I don't want to do, thankyouverymuch.)
Dad had no idea he was auditioning for "Britain's Got Talent," then brought the house down.
Sorry, this is both smile-worthy and tear-worthy, so you might want to grab a tissue before watching. So dang sweet.
Believe it or not, there really was a "pandemic of benevolence" in 2021.
The conclusion of the 2022 World Happiness Report ought to give you a boost of faith in humanity:
"Although our three measures of prosocial behaviour—donations, volunteering and helping strangers—had differing levels and trends, all showed increases in 2021 in every global region, often at remarkable rates not seen for any of the variables we have tracked before and during the pandemic.
Global benevolence, as measured by the average of the three measures of prosocial behaviour, has increased remarkably in 2021, up by almost 25% of its pre-pandemic level, led by the helping of strangers, but with strong growth also in donations and volunteering."
Read the full story here.
If you need a pep talk, let this 3-year-old's affirmations inspire you.
Definitely want the sound up on this one. This is the kind of pump-up we all need to give ourselves each day. "I'M RUNNED OUT OF POWER BUT I CAN STILL MAKE IT DOWN DIS BIG HILL." Right on, little one.
Hope that brought many smiles to your face, friends! Come back next week for another roundup of joy and delight.
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- Dad had no idea he was auditioning for 'Britain's Got Talent.' He brought the house down anyway. - Upworthy ›
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."