Baby Meets Buddies

At certain times during this video from Orangutan Outreach, it's difficult to tell if this baby is terrified or excited. What is clear is that the cuteness is completely overwhelming. Her name is Rickina and she lives at the Ketapang Orangutan Rescue Center in Indonesian Borneo. There's information about the plight of orangutans and the organizations responsible for rescuing and rehabilitating these great apes at the Orangutan Outreach website. Rickina and her adorable friends are also adoptable!

Fenway Performance

At Boston's Fenway Park on Tuesday night, an adorable little four-year-old girl who is battling leukemia had the privilege of singing during the seventh inning stretch. Her rendition of God Bless America during the Red Sox-Orioles game had to bring smiles to the faces and tears to the eyes of everyone in attendance that night. For the full article from Boston.com, click here.

50th Anniversary

With yesterday being the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech at the March on Washington, there were articles and stories and commentaries on the event all over the Internet. CBS News told a great behind the scenes story about the speech and the paper it was written on.

Old Skool

This story from ABC News is actually a couple of months old, but it's too inspiring not to share. A former juvenile probation officer in San Francisco used her entire retirement savings to start a restaurant--but not just any restaurant. The Old Skool Cafe is a place to employ the youth she'd been working with after they get out of jail. She's giving them skills and confidence and new found passions, and she's keeping them off the streets. For the full story, click here.

Audience Participation

When performer Kristin Chenoweth called a random audience member at a recent concert in LA up to the stage for a duet, the result was more amazing than anyone could have imagined. The fan, named Sarah, turned out to be a voice teacher, and the resulting performance was absolutely incredible. For the full story from Huffington Post, click here, and for Sarah's take on the experience, you can visit BroadwayWorld.com.

Autistic Rock Stars

Last week ABC's Good Morning America did a fascinating story about the surprising combination of surfing and autistic children. An organization called Surfers for Autism has served 3,000 children with developmental delays at their events around the world since 2007. They help to unlock the potential of the young people participating and those volunteering at their events. For the full story as well as a video of a little surfer, click here.

Unlikely Swim Coach

Last week, NBC's Today Show did a great story on a woman who didn't let the cards she was dealt stop her from making a huge impact with her life. She's teaching thousands of North Carolina children to swim despite the fact that multiple sclerosis forced her into a wheelchair 20 years ago. For the full story and a video, click here.

Medical Miracle

This story from Good Morning America on ABC is absolutely jaw dropping. There's no scientific explanation for this man coming back from the dead, but it's certainly evidence that miracles really do still happen. For the full story, click here.

Breaking News | Celebrity News | More ABC News Videos

Homeless to Howard

The Today Show on NBC did a great story this week about a homeless Los Angeles teenager who was able to go to college. Thanks to his own hard work and the fundraising efforts of one of the volunteers at the homeless shelter where he stayed, he is now attending Howard University. It's inspiring and amazing how many complete strangers donated to the cause. For the full story, click here.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

An Airline With Heart

The Yeshiva World News shared this story of a little girl battling cancer who had boarded a plane in Israel with about 30 other kids with an organization called Chai Lifeline. This organization was flying these children to a camp in New York specifically for kids in the midst of this disease. When this little girl named Inbar couldn't find her passport, she was forced to get off the plane and watch her friends taxi towards the runway without her. When her passport was found, the pilots of El Al airlines got special permission to break all the rules and go get her. Instead of being angry about the additional delay, the other passengers shared in Inbar's happiness! Here's the story from ABC News, but for the full story from the rabbi on the plane, click here.

Heroism

The heroic acts of this one woman saved countless lives yesterday at an Atlanta school. It's absolutely mind-blowing to think about how terrifying the situation must have been and the courage and poise it must have taken to talk the young man into surrendering. This woman's compassion for the shooter, who seemed to be struggling with mental illness, was what enabled her to help him and protect the 800+ students she cared about. Here's a brief interview from ABC News, but for the full story and full interview from NPR, click here.

Breaking News | Celebrity News | More ABC News Videos

Acts Of Kindness

The HLN network shared this great story about a teenage girl who lost her entire family in an auto accident back in 2007. So many people reached out to support her in the midst of this tragedy, including the family who pulled her from the wreckage. She wanted to pay it forward with random acts of kindness every year to honor the memory of her parents and sister. She launched the project on Facebook this year and encourages others to share their RAOKs--especially on August 18, the anniversary of the accident. Click the links below for the full story, video or Facebook page.

Story

Video

Facebook

Amazing Honesty

It's so nice to know that there are still people in the world with loads of integrity. ABC News did a story on a woman who found over $10,000 while sorting donations in the Goodwill store where she works in California. She could have so easily kept the money for herself without anyone knowing. Hopefully her honesty will be rewarded! Click here for the full story and video.

Courageous Hero

The Charlotte Observer website reported on this very courageous man who stopped to help two elderly people who were being attacked by two large dogs. The couple was out walking their two smaller dogs when the unleashed dogs without owners in sight began lunging and biting at the couple, who were holding their own pets trying to protect them. After several other drivers passed by, this was the one person to turn his vehicle around to come help them and distract their attackers. Anyone who has ever seen any sort of dog fight close up knows it takes guts to try and intervene! For the full story, click here.

Getting Smarter

For those of us in the over 40 crowd, this is especially exciting news. Research published in the current issue of the journal Psychological Science indicates that there are many ways that our brains actually improve as we get older. There are lots of things we can look forward to during retirement, but apparently we need to add our growing brains and enhanced people skills to the list. For the full story from the TIME magazine website, click here.

Starting A New Life

The BBC did a great story a couple of days ago about some teenage gang members who are getting help from an organization called GRASP (Gang Rescue and Support Project). This peer run intervention group based in Denver has a program to help teens get their gang tattoos removed so that they can leave a life of violence behind, look for employment and have the hope of a future. For the full story with a video, click here.

Daddy Daughter Dance

Almost everyone has heard of the popular "Daddy Daughter" dances held in cities all over the country. This touching story from ABC news is about a very different Daddy Daughter Dance--one that could potentially give daughters and fathers both hope for a better future.

Possible Chromosomal Correction

There was a really interesting study published last month in Nature, the International weekly journal of science. Apparently researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School have figured out a way to silence the extra chromosome that causes Down’s syndrome. They aren't sure yet exactly how this would affect individuals with the disorder, but are hoping the research could lead to ways to treat the health and/or cognitive problems associated with the chromosomal abnormality. This of course will raise a wealth of ethical issues when it comes to treating individuals with Down's syndrome, but it's exciting research when you think about how it could be applied to other genetic diseases and disorders. There are lots of different articles on the issue with all sorts of different angles and opinions (including this one from an NPR station out of Boston), but the original publication from Nature.com can be found here.

Humble Hero

Ft. Worth's NBC station did a story last week about a local restaurant owner who saved one of his customers from choking. Even though the restaurant was full of staff and other patrons, owner Mike Smith was the only person who was able to do the Heimlich maneuver properly! The police department formally recognized Mike as a hero--especially since the man he saved was a police officer. For the full story, click here.

Gas Price Decline

It's always great news when gas prices in the U.S. are on the decline. Bloomberg.com reports that they've gone down over 7 cents per gallon in just the last two weeks. For the full article, click here!

Trash Into Treasure

This movie trailer for a documentary about the beauty that can be created out of what the world considers garbage is incredibly moving. The documentary itself is scheduled to be released in January 2014.



Find out more about the documentary and how it was funded through a Kickstarter campaign by visiting their website, landfillharmonicmovie.com.

A Change of Heart

Thank goodness that mistakes can be corrected and hardened hearts can be changed. NPR reported yesterday on burglars in California who returned what they had stolen after finding out who they had robbed. Read the full story here.

What a "Can Do" Attitude Can Do

This great story from ESPN reporter Tom Rinaldi will leave you humbled, thankful and inspired. When you have a free 8 minutes today, you should definitely check it out. It's about an incredible man and his phenomenal parents who never found an obstacle they couldn't overcome.

Welcome!

Welcome to Today's Positive Thing! This blog was started in an attempt to counteract some of the negativity we see in the media and in our culture. The cynical and hopeless messages in today's news, movies, television programming, blogs and music can be overwhelmingly depressing at times! This small corner of the Internet will be a place that you can visit--every day--to see, read or hear something that will hopefully encourage you and make you smile. Our goal is to share hope and make the Internet and our world just a tiny bit more positive!