+
ukraine soldiers get married

Lesya and Valeriy getting wed on the frontlines

Even while facing the uncertainty of war, a Ukrainian couple decided to celebrate life by getting wed on the battlefield. Their story is sweeping the internet, reminding us all that when tomorrow is not guaranteed, there is no better day than today to honor love.

Lesya Ivashchenko and Valeriy Fylymonov had been romantic partners for more than 20 years (according to ABC News), and even have an adult daughter together. But still, they had never officially tied the knot.

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion—prompting many Ukrainians to join the country’s defense forces—Lesya and Valeriy had not seen each other. Their reunion was marked with the impromptu marriage ceremony.

Lesya told ABC News “We decided who knows what will happen tomorrow. We should get married in front of the state, in front of God.”



Donned in military attire rather than a white dress and tux, the bride and groom hold champagne flutes as they are serenaded by fellow soldiers. One even plays a bandura (a traditional Ukrainian lute-like instrument). The bride holds a bouquet of white flowers while wearing a veil. She holds hands with her beloved as they listen to the music. Despite everything, these people show optimism for the future.

The now-viral video offers powerful imagery symbolizing the unwavering resilience of the Ukrainian people. They continue to inspire the world to hold onto hope, in both big and small ways.

At Upworthy, we are dedicated to finding stories that uphold the very best of humanity. The particular kind of courage displayed by these wedded combatants—who still choose love in a time of war—is indeed a story about humanity at its best.

Photo by Jacopo Maia on Unsplash

True

When I was a kid, I loved picking blackberries. I spent hours in the scalding hot sun pulling the fattest ones off the bushes and collecting them in a bucket, careful to avoid the thorns.

Keep ReadingShow less

This article originally appeared on 04.24.18


Around 1 a.m. on April 24, semi-truck drivers in the Oak Park area of Michigan received a distress call from area police: An unidentified man was standing on the edge of a local bridge, apparently ready to jump onto the freeway below.

Those drivers then did something amazing. They raced to the scene to help — and lined up their trucks under the bridge, providing a relatively safe landing space should the man jump.

Fortunately, he didn't.


Keep ReadingShow less
Education

Artist's unusual techniques and tools mesmerize viewers as he paints magical scenes

The Jay Lee painting tutorial already has 184 million views. People can't look away!

Photo by Anna Kolosyuk on Unsplash

Jay Lee's popular painting tutorials make painting seem easy.

Watching someone create a piece of art can be a fascinating experience even when using traditional methods, but when an artist utilizes unique tools and techniques, it's all the more mesmerizing. (Have you seen the guy who creates huge, hyperrealistic drawings with just a basic Bic ballpoint pen? Absolutely amazing.)

Then, when you add an element of soothing sounds on top of it—such as Bob Ross' calm voice and wholesome commentary, for example—watching art come to life becomes an almost meditative experience.

Enter Jay Lee, a painter who has grown a huge following on YouTube with his wordless painting tutorials. Lee's techniques are unconventional from the get-go, as he often starts his paintings by applying streaks and globs of paint directly on the canvas. As he blends the paint with calming instrumental music in the background, you can start to see the beginnings of a background take shape.

Keep ReadingShow less

Not so scary anymore.

Whether you’re a horror aficionado or your scary threshold is at a level 2, you’re bound to be familiar with at least a couple of iconic horror movies. The horror genre is a huge part of our culture, allowing us to explore the darkest depths of the human psyche within the safety and comfort of home—or a theater, if you dare.

As counterintuitive as it might sound, watching horror movies can be more than stimulating entertainment for some people. It can act as a form of exposure therapy, helping reduce anxiety levels. Of course, this is not the case for everyone, but it certainly helps explain why the genre is so well loved and continues gaining popularity. Even in 2020—arguably an anxiety-inducing year for everyone—horror movies were the only ones to actually see a surge in ticket sales. Sometimes it’s just more cathartic to see an actual monster wreaking havoc in a fictional world than it is to think about all real-world worries that haunt our imaginations.

Still, not everyone can shake off that scary feeling that a horror movie elicits, and therefore might not partake in watching. Nonetheless, they might enjoy seeing the edge taken off with a bit of lighthearted humor. After all, it’s often recommended to watch a little comedy after a horror flick to clean out the heebie jeebies.

Jimmy Fallon asked folks to “take a horror movie and add one word to change the plot and tag it with #AddAWordRuinAHorrorMovie for his ever-popular Hashtags segment on “The Tonight Show.” Granted, some people took liberties with the rules—occasionally replacing a word in the title, for example—but nonetheless, grammatical fun was had. And well-known horror movie plots did undergo hilariously drastic changes.

Below are 23 of the best ones. Enjoy, because even those who can’t handle anything too scary deserve a little spooky entertainment.

Keep ReadingShow less