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Tense video shows two barbers rushing to save little girl from running into traffic

The heroes say they went into "dad mode" and immediately acted.

@obthebarber/Instagram

Some people step into action without a second thought.

When two barbers noticed a young girl racing by their window and into oncoming traffic, they only had seconds to act. And thankfully, they did without hesitation.

Osvaldo Lugo recently posted a harrowing surveillance video to the Instagram account of his Connecticut-based business, the Look Sharp Barbershop, which shows himself and an employee, Rafael Santana, racing out to scoop up a young girl mere seconds away from bolting into oncoming traffic.

Lugo tells ABC7 that he simply went into “dad mode” the minute he spotted the girl in the shop window, who had escaped her mother at a nearby bus stop. Thank goodness he did, and that he and Santana were able to help the girl reunite with her mom, who seemed “confused and shocked but grateful,” per Today.com.

Even knowing this story has a happy ending, viewers found the footage terrifying, and commended the barbers on their bravery and fast action.

“I can’t believe how long I was holding my breath while watching, even knowing that you both were to save her before she ran into the traffic,” one person wrote.

Another added, “Omg this gave me chills! Thank God you guys saw her & most importantly went into action.”

The East Hartford Police Department also praised Santana and Lugo in a Facebook post, which read:

“Heroic Barbers to the Rescue! Today, we want to give a massive shoutout to the quick-thinking and brave duo, Osvaldo Lugo and Rafael Santana of LookSharp Barbershop.Their swift action saved a little toddler who had escaped from his mother and started moving towards traffic on Main Street. Thanks to them, a potential tragedy was averted, and a family remains whole. We’re incredibly grateful for these everyday heroes among us!”

As for Luca and Santana, their actions aren’t considered anything out of the ordinary. As Santana shared with TODAY.com, “We did this out of love and we’d do it a million times again. We protect and serve our community at all costs.”

It’s never a bad time to share stories like these. But right now, they seem more important than ever.

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Man enlists the help of a cockatoo for one of the most unique proposals ever caught on video

@7NewsSC/Twitter

As we careen through the first few weeks of 2021, we could all use a feel-good story. And what's better than a sweet proposal story to bring us all a bit of joy?

Jesse took his girlfriend Erin to a bird show at the Australian Zoo last week. (Since Australia has managed to control the pandemic, people are able to do such things. Isn't that nice?) The bird handler introduced the audience to Euli, a red-tailed black cockatoo, then asked the audience for a volunteer. Erin stood up and waved her arms, and when she was chosen, she assumed she'd gotten lucky.

The bird handler had Erin pull out a five-dollar bill and hold it in her hand with her arm out. Euli, the handler said, would know exactly who to go to since she was holding the money. Sure enough, Euli flew up to Erin, took the bill from her hand, and flew back.

Then the handler said Euli was going to take Erin her "receipt." The bird flew up, handed Erin a piece of paper. The handler told Erin to open it and read it, and that's when she got the surprise of her life.

The look on Erin's face is classic as it sinks in that Jesse is proposing to her. (If you watch him carefully, you can see him pulling the ring from his pocket as she's opening up the note.) She turns to look at him, and he smoothly goes down on one knee with the ring.

And of course—thankfully, because it would be really embarrassing if she didn't—Erin said yes.

Clearly, if Jesse knew Erin well enough to know that she'd immediately stand up and wave both arms when a bird show emcee asked for a volunteer, he probably knew she was going to say yes when the bird handed her a proposal. Coordinating the surprise was the bigger issue, and he and the handler pulled it off beautifully.

Way to go, Jesse. We've seen some creative proposals before (Remember the guy who edited the Disney movie?) but it's been a while since we've gotten to enjoy one of these in-public surprise moments.

And right now, we can all use this kind of wholesome feel-good story to brighten our day. Hugs and applause and all the warm gushy feelings. Congrats to the adorable young couple.


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A bride's bouquet toss 'plot twist' has people all up in their feelings

Rex Chapman/Black Couples/Twitter

It's a well-known standard of etiquette that you don't upstage a bride at her wedding. You should dress up and look nice, but not fancier than the bride. And you certainly shouldn't draw attention to yourself with a big announcement, taking the attention away from the big day and turning it onto yourself.

But what if the bride does that for you?

A video shared by @_BlackCouples and reshared by @RexChapman starts with a bride with her back to her line of bridesmaids, preparing to toss the bouquet. Traditionally, the woman who catches the bouquet is supposed to be the next one to tie the knot. But as this bride is about to toss the flowers, she stops.

Then she turns around, shakes her head, and starts walking toward one of her bridesmaids.

The bridesmaid clearly has no idea what's going on, and when the bride hands her the bouquet she just giggles. Then the bride spins her around to her boyfriend, who is down on one knee, holding up a ring. Aw, dang.

The joy of the whole wedding party is palpable as the bridesmaid squeals and then starts to cry. Her boyfriend's grin could not be wider, and the bride herself is beaming behind her friend.

Some people commented on the video saying they'd be upset if a friend stole their thunder with a stunt like that on their big day, but it's clear that the bride was 100% in on it. It's not like she was taken by surprise, which would have been tacky. There are stories of clueless people staging their own big moment during someone's wedding reception, and such stories are always super cringey.

But this wasn't that. This looks like a beautiful group of friends sharing not just one, but two very special events in their lives at the same time. The bride selflessly shared the spotlight on her big day, and in doing so got to play a significant role in someone else's love story as well—someone that she clearly cares a lot about to want to surprise her like that at such an iconic moment.

The video clearly hit people right in their soft spots, perhaps especially right now when so many of us have had to miss out on attending our loved ones' weddings. It's not clear when this wedding took place, but it's presumably from before the pandemic. These are the kinds of moments we long to see again, when we can safely hold big gatherings, when don't have to wear masks and mentally measure six feet constantly, when we can hug our loved ones with wild abandon.

Until that normalcy returns, we'll just have to live vicariously through these kinds of inspiring, feel-good videos.

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Security cameras showed a kid 'tearing it up' in his driveway each night. So he took adorable action.

Most of us had one of those neighbors growing up—the one who gave us the stink eye if we so much as looked at their perfectly mowed lawn and shooed us away if even our shadows crept onto their flower beds. There's a reason "Get off my lawn!" was a meme before memes were even a thing.

Then there are neighbors who rock. The ones who smile and wave through the window and share their fresh-baked cookies with the neighborhood kids. The folks who genuinely enjoy the vibrant energy that children bring to the block and embrace the idea of "it takes a village."

When one of the guys behind Canyon Chasers, a motorcycle enthusiast website, shared a video of how he handled a kid who kept playing in his driveway when he wasn't home, it wasn't clear at first which kind of neighbor he was going to be. But then he explains how his security footage showed a preschooler riding his bike around his flat concrete driveway every evening, and how he decided to do something about it.

And what ensued was the best Anti-Get-Off-My-Lawn move that ended up pleasing more neighbors than he anticipated.

How I Deal With Kids Playing in My Driveway | The Saga of My Driveway Racetrackwww.youtube.com

How fun would that have been when you were a kid? And how great that he made a new one each time it rained? And how delightful is it that people of all ages showed up to enjoy it?

Imagine a world where all neighbors were this thoughtful and generous with their time and property. More of this, please.

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