Find the good
Vol. 5, Issue 23
“Find the good. It’s all around you. Find it, showcase it and you’ll start believing in it.” –Jesse Owens
THE GOOD NEWS
Open your eyes
It’s easy to become jaded by the news. Read any newspaper, check your phone alerts or turn on the TV, and, within minutes, you’ll be immersed in all of the terrible things that are happening. You’ll also likely find yourself alternating between feelings of terror, disgust, horror, sadness, fury and frustration. Light knows I do.
I also confess that it’s been a rough week. At my “day” job, I’ve been busy covering war and politics, crime and natural disasters. I’m tired, but no less determined.
Which is why this week’s issue of “A Bit of Good News” will be a little different. Instead of featuring two good news stories, I’m going to focus on three ways to look at the world more positively.
Ready?
First, peer out your window. Your view is different from anyone else’s. But what if you could share that view -- and see the world through other people’s windows? Now you can.
WindowSwap is a website that allows people to share 10-minute videos of the views from their windows. Here are a few examples:
Filled with wanderlust but can’t afford to travel? Dreaming of a different season? Wonder what’s happening on the other side of the globe? Just bookmark this website, and whenever you need an escape, open a new window.
The world is truly a beautiful place. It’s also a mysterious one. I mean, what is beneath the waters that cover more than 70% of our planet?
According to the Oceanic Society, the oceans are home to millions of species. Oceans regulate our climate and generate half of Earth’s oxygen, yet there is still so much we don’t know about what lies beneath the surface.
Neal Agarwal, a developer and game designer with a “passion for creative coding,” has built a delightful page called The Deep Sea that allows viewers to scroll down and learn more about the oceans’ depths. This digital experience reveals fascinating facts about some of the creatures that survive — and thrive — in the Twilight Zone, the Midnight Zone, the Abyssal Zone, the Hadal Zone and the Challenger Deep.
Indulge your curiosity and check it out. You’ll learn so much. Just don’t hold your breath on the way down!
I hope these sites have opened your eyes to some of the wonders all around you. Now, let’s join together to be other people’s eyes.
Simply download Be My Eyes to your phone. This free accessibility app connects blind and low-vision users with sighted volunteers who help make the world more accessible. The user points their cellphone’s camera at something, and a volunteer provides real-time descriptions and support. Watch this video to learn more:
The brainchild of Hans Jørgen Wiberg, a Danish craftsman with low vision, Be My Eyes launched in 2015 with an admirable goal: to make the lives of people who are blind or have low vision just a little bit easier.
To date, this global micro-volunteering platform has connected 10.5 million volunteers to over 1 million blind and low-vision people in 150+ countries and in 180+ languages.
If you want to help make the world just a little bit better than what you see or read in the news, sign up. I will, too.
It’s tea time, puppy!
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THIS WEEK IN (POSITIVE) HISTORY
On June 25, 1978, the first version of the rainbow flag was flown during the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day parade.
On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that same-sex marriage was a legal right in all 50 states.
On June 27, 1987, singer Whitney Houston became the first woman in U.S. history to enter the album chart at No. 1 with “Whitney.”
On June 28, 1953, workers at a Chevrolet plant in Flint, Mich., assembled the first Corvette.
On June 29, 2007, Apple’s first mobile “smartphone,” the iPhone, went on sale.
On June 30, 1972, the first leap second was added to Coordinated Universal Time.
On July 1, 1979, the first Sony Walkman went on sale.
THIS WEEK’S FUN HOLIDAYS
June 25 is Global Beatles Day, International Day of the Seafarer, National Catfish Day, National Handshake Day, National Strawberry Parfait Day, National Work From Home Day, Color TV Day and Goat Cheese Day
June 26 is World Refrigeration Day, National Barcode Day, National Canoe Day, National Chocolate Pudding Day, National Coconut Day, National Food Truck Day and Marriage Equality Day
June 27 is National Bingo Day, National Ice Cream Cake Day, National Onion Day, National Orange Blossom Day, National Sunglasses Day, National Women’s Fly-Fishing Day and Helen Keller Day
June 28 is Global Smurfs Day, International Cream Tea Day, National Ceviche Day, National Paul Bunyan Day, National Tapioca Day and Log Cabin Day
June 29 is International Day of the Tropics, International Fisherman Day, International Mud Day, National Almond Buttercrunch Day, National Camera Day and National Waffle Iron Day
June 30 is International Asteroid Day, National Organization for Women Day and Meteor Watch Day
July 1 is International Chicken Wing Day, International Joke Day, International Reggae Day, National Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day, National Gingersnap Day, National Postal Workers Day, National U.S. Postage Stamp Day, American Zoo Day, Early Bird Day and Zip Code Day
HOW TO SPREAD JOY/KINDNESS
* Create business cards with the contact information of local mental health centers and shelters for people experiencing homelessness. Leave these cards in places where people in need can access them.
* Donate your old pairs of glasses. You can find collection boxes in optical stores and at charities like Goodwill.
* Collect or create a roll of quarters and leave it where people may use ‘em (think the laundromat, parking meters, vending machines, arcades, shopping carts, etc.)
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MOMENT OF GRATITUDE
Thanks to Elissa Garcia, Unsplash, The Donut, WindowSwap, Sonali Ranjit, Vimeo, Hiroko Yoshii, Oceanic Society, Neil Agarwal, Neal.Fun, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Ocean Ambassadors, Wildlife Nomads, World Atlas, Be My Eyes, Hans Jørgen Wiberg, TEDx Talks, YouTube, Visit London, Instagram, Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, Inc., History.com, This Day in History, Britannica, Time and Date, On This Day, the Library of Congress, IMDb, This Day in Music, National Today, National Day Calendar, Holidays Calendar, The End Files, Everything Is Amazing, Emily Charlotte Powell, While I Was Drawing, Counting Beans, Canva and Deposit Photos for art and story suggestions. Note: Generative AI was not used during the ideation, creation or publication of this newsletter.
KEEP IN TOUCH
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