Happy Friday, folks!  Here’s what I’m obsessed with this week:  The best of humanity!  Cassie sent me a link to a group of pictures and stories that will, “restore your faith in humanity”.  And boy did it.  I know we typically do a bunch of laugh-out-loud things on Friday, but I just had to pass along the warm fuzzies I’m feeling today.  So, here we go!

- Japan Pensioners volunteer to tackle nuclear crisis:  “A group of more than 209 pensioners are volunteering to tackle the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima power station.  They say they should be facing the dangers of radiation, not the young.”  Amazing.  God bless those people for sacrificing for others.  Love that story!

- Two Norwegian guys rescue a sheep from the ocean.  What can I say?  This melted my heart when I saw the pics.  **big smile!**

- Megan Vogel, an Ohio athlete, helps an injured opponent across the finish line.  I ♥ this so much!!  What amazing character this girl has!  What good sportsmanship.  Her parents should be so proud of her!

- This note (pictured right) was left for a waiter along with a $20 tip by an elderly lady in his restaurant.  Love, love, love.  It says, “Luke, The tip for you was given because you remind me of my son, Deron, who died 15 years ago.  Maybe you look a little like him, but it is your kind, gentle, conscientious mannerly spirit that makes the connection.  Thanks for the bitter sweet memory.  God bless you, dear!”  No, God bless you, dear woman.

-  This interaction (pictured left) between a Guatemalan girl and tourist she just met.  How sweet!  It just put a smile on my face.  Every young girl loves to be given flowers! 

- A note left on their bill at dinner for a man, his wife, and their 1-year-old said, “Someone once bought our dinner when we were young parents.  It made quite a mark on us.  The foundation of this gesture was good parenting.  Keep up the good work.  Time goes by so fast.”  Yes, it sure does.

- And finally, you may have heard of this one.  It is probably one of the best (and worst) stories I’ve heard in a long time.  This week, a video of 12- and 13-year-old school kids bullying a 68-year-old school bus monitor has been floating around the web.  I learned of it yesterday and my heart broke as I listened to several minutes of the 10-minute video (I couldn’t watch it all because it was too horrible).  I got tears in my eyes and I watched this woman silently weep as the children taunted her, pulled her hair and flicked her ears.  As a parent, I was dismayed that young kids would ever think of behaving this way to anyone, let alone an older person.  As I dug a little deeper into the story, I discovered there was a young man who was equally appalled that these kids would humiliate this woman like this and felt like this school bus monitor, who makes about $15,000 a year, deserved a very nice vacation.  So, he started a fundraising campaign on Indiegogo.com and encouraged people to help fund it.  As of the writing of this blog post, his goal of $5000 has been met – 96 times over!  People from all over have been generously giving to this woman with the hopes that she not only get to go on vacation, but that she may be able to retire and enjoy her golden years in comfort.  The average donation from the 22,464 people is $21.46!!  Wow! I cannot tell you how this story is shaping up has overjoyed me!  This woman has seen the worst in humanity when she endured the tauntings of these children, but now she has seen best with this outpouring from strangers who simply want to say, “They were wrong.  What happened to you was terrible and this is my small way of speaking out and making a difference.  Enjoy!”

Here is the link for the campaign, which contains the video (caution, the language and actions of these kids are pretty horrible) in case you want to watch along with us to see how much this woman actually gets.  The fundraising goes until July 20, so it is possible she could get upwards of a million dollars (before taxes, of course)!

Well, guys, I know these are the funnies you are used to on Fridays, but I think they will still put a pep in your step!  It just kind of makes you feel good all over to see people treating others with kindness and compassion.  Have a good weekend and we will see you next week!