Christmas is all about family, love, tradition, and finding yourself. Offering words of support and kindness to those whose self-esteem is a bit down because of various reasons, will help lift the person’s spirit during the most wonderful time of the year. Because, at the end of the day, everyone deserves a perfect holiday spent with those that matter.
Six-year-old Lindon was looking forward to the holiday, but it seemed there was something that bothered this young boy. Luckily, the good old Santa Claus was there to make things right and revive the faith in the magic of Christmas.
When he and his family went to RiverTown Crossings mall in Michigan, Landon couldn’t wait to get closer to the Big Man and ask him an important question.
Facebook/Naomi Johnson
The boy had a secret he didn’t want to share with anyone except for Santa whom he trusts. As he was coming closer, he started shaking. Nervously, he asked:
“Will my autism put me on the naughty list?”
The poor boy though his condition could be a reason he’s not getting a present from Santa.
Screenshot via YouTube
Without hesitation, Santa responded with an amazing answer, WOOD-TV reported.
“You know I love you and the reindeer love you and it’s OK. You’re a good boy. You’re a good boy, you know?”
Landon felt relieved and happy as he heard exactly what he needed to hear. His nervousness and anxiety faded away as Santa assured him that he was a great boy he would visit on the night of Christmas. The way Santa put it into words made Landon’s mom Naomi shed tears of joy. The Big Man told the little boy that he wasn’t neither better nor worse than others because of his mental state. With only five words Santa made everything right again: “It’s OK to be you!”
Screenshot via YouTube
Santa was there to provide an insecure young boy with kind words that made him believe in himself again. The two spent five more minutes chatting and Santa was more than happy to answer all of Landon’s questions.
Screenshot via YouTube
Naomi was thrilled that her son was able to absorb Santa’s lesson.
“Here was Landon, sitting with Santa and being told that it was ok to be himself. Mommy tells him all the time that he’s special and I love him the way he was made, but it’s always nice to hear it from others.”
The reassurance from such an important person warmed their hearts and gave Landon the boost of confidence he was searching for.
Screenshot via YouTube
Santa’s kind deed put him onto a different, more special kind of list.
“We have met a lot of amazing people in our Autism journey, but this one made the top of the list.”
The old man was compassionate and said the right words at the right time. That day, he changed a little boy’s life completely, by making him accept himself the way he was.
Once you see the whole story it will leave you in tears, so you better grab a box of tissues while watching.
There are times in life when we feel like our world turns upside down and there is no way out of the desperate situation we found ourselves in. But, many times, in cases like this, certain people cross our path and enter our life only to remind us that we are not fighting our battles alone, and things aren’t always as bad as they seem.
An Indian traffic police officer is a living proof of this. He entered this old lady’s life and gave her a helping hand in the toughest of times. The 80-year-old woman named Buchamma was found curled up by a Hyderabad roadside nearby the Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU). She had apparently spent the last three days there, and no one, except for Mr. B.Gopal, cared enough to offer her at least a glass of water.
“The elderly woman who was seated near JNTUH crossroads reminded me of my mother,”
The kindhearted man felt he could at least buy her a meal.
“I offered her a cup of tea and then bought lunch for her,” says Gopal, reports The Hindu. “But she was unable to even eat with her own hands, so I fed her.”
A passerby who witnessed the lovely sight twitted the officer’s kind act and it vent viral for all the right reasons.
“This is called change, not only friendly police, also called social responsibility,” tweeted one man.
“Humanity can be clearly seen in this Gentleman,” wrote another. “Hats off B.Gopal.”
One person commented:
“It’s people like you who enhance our lives, who make the world a wonderful place, who inspire us to put others first, who help us to overlook the evil. Thank you.”
This lady’s life was pretty difficult, and her faith is sad, because she ended up on the streets and then thanks to Mr. B. Gopal she was moved to Anand Ashram, a shelter for the homeless. Besides having nine children, none of them provided for their mother.
Buchamma will have a roof over her head, and regular meals, away from her family.
What the officer did not only changed Buchamma’s life, but it restored our faith in humanity. He is everything a person should be, kind, caring, and compassionate. We hope more people will follow his example and will help someone in need.
Katie Egger Markis from Washington D.C was awoken by the sound of her smartphone. An alert from the home security provider told her something unusual was taking place at her front porch. As she was about to head to her teaching workout class, she got up from bed and approached the cameras that were showing a stranger standing at her front door. She has never seen that man before in her life so she sort of freaked out and got suspicious.
Facebook/Katie Egger Makris
Her first thought was that he could be a delivery guy, but it was still dark outside and way too early for someone to be at their job at that time. At that point, Katie really had no idea who that man could be and why he was pacing back and forth her porch. She later posted on Facebook saying:
“Typically, posted videos from Ring cameras are about package thefts, break ins, people juggling car doors on the street to see what’s open…and our neighborhood list serve is always littered with these this time of year.”
YouTube
However, it turned out the man wasn’t there for any of the reasons that went through Katie’s mind. It was visible from the camera footage that he intended to leave something for the family, but was walking around to find just the perfect place.
Once Katie saw him wandering off she couldn’t wait to see what he dropped off. She called her husband and asked him to check. To Katie’s surprise, what the stranger placed under the doormat was her wallet.
She must have lost it the previous day during her morning jog. The kind stranger did an amazing thing. He probably learned Katie’s address from her ID card and decided to get it back to her, without asking anything in return.
YouTube
Katie shared the whole story on Facebook:
“This guy was nice enough to stop his van, clearly checked the address on the ID and returned it under our mat. Anyone who lives in DC knows this is pretty much unheard of – you drop a wallet, you lose a wallet, and you usually lose everything in your accounts if you’re not quick, too. Counting my blessings today- I’m damn lucky. Random Dallas fan in the plaid with the white van: thank you. You’re what’s right in the world.”
We sometimes make assumptions beforehand and later realize how wrong we may end up being, as in this case. Katie is beyond grateful for this man’s act.
Take a look at the video below.
Children are the most honest creatures who don’t really care whether you like what they have to say or not. They always speak their mind and that’s one of the reasons we love them so much. Now imagine how teachers may feel like, surrounded by a bunch of smarty pants who are eager to share everything they’ve seen and heard with the whole class. Students definitely tell stories worth sharing, pretty much like the one below.
It’s old, but gold! A must read that will make you burst out laughing.
I’ve been teaching now for about fifteen years. I have two kids myself, but the best birth story I know is the one I saw in my own second-grade classroom a few years back.
Usually, show-and-tell is pretty tame. Kids bring in pet turtles, model airplanes, pictures of fish they catch, stuff like that. And I never, ever place any boundaries or limitations on them. If they want to lug it to school and talk about it, they’re welcome.
Well, one day this little girl, Erica, a very bright, very outgoing kid, takes her turn and waddles up to the front of the class with a pillow stuffed under her sweater. She holds up a snapshot of an infant.
“This is Luke, my baby brother, and I’m going to tell you about his birthday. First, Mommy and Daddy made him as a symbol of their love, and then Daddy put a seed in my mother’s stomach, and Luke grew in there.
He ate for 9 months through an umbrella cord.”
She’s standing there with her hands on the pillow, and I’m trying not to laugh and wishing I had a video camera rolling. The kids are watching her in amazement.
“Then, about two Saturdays ago, my mother starts going, ‘Oh, oh, oh!”
Erica puts a hand behind her back and groans.
“She walked around the house for, like an hour, “Oh, oh, oh!”
Now this kid is doing this hysterical duck-walk, holding her back and groaning.
“My father called the middle wife. She delivers babies, but she doesn’t have a sign on the car like the Domino’s man.
They got my mother to lay down in bed like this.”
Erica lies down with her back against the wall.
“And then, pop! My mother had this bag of water she kept in there in case he got thirsty, and it just blew up and spilled all over the bed, like psshhheew!”
The kid has her legs spread and with her little hands is miming water flowing away. It was too much!
“Then the middle wife starts going push, push, and breathe, breathe. They start counting, but they never even got past 10. Then, all of a sudden, out comes my brother. He was covered in yucky stuff they said was from the play-center, so there must be a lot of stuff inside there.”
Then Erica stood up, took a big theatrical bow and returned to her seat. I’m sure I applauded the loudest. Ever since then, if it’s show-and-tell day, I bring my camcorder – just in case another Erica comes along.
If you like this story, please share it with friends.
It seems that nowadays common sense is not that common. People get offended easily, and most of them lost the ability to perceive things in a rational manner. Someone who realized this posted the best obituary ever written in the New York Times.
Read it below:
Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
– Knowing when to come in out of the rain;
– Why the early bird gets the worm;
– Life isn’t always fair;
– And maybe it was my fault.
Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).
His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense took a beating when you couldn’t defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.
Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death,
-by his parents, Truth and Trust,
-by his wife, Discretion,
-by his daughter, Responsibility,
-and by his son, Reason.
He is survived by his 5 stepbrothers;
– I Know My Rights
– I Want It Now
– Someone Else Is To Blame
– I’m A Victim
– Pay me for Doing Nothing
Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.
If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.
Share this with your friends, in loving memory of Common Sense!
Every once in a while we come across optical illusions that have the power to play tricks with our brain. We see things that are not there, and sometimes even miss the obvious. Illusions definitely confuse us and blow our mind, but are fascinating and interactive at the same time. Sometimes they go viral and spark debate among the Internet users. You may well remember the famous dress. What was its color? Was it white and gold,or black and blue? I guess we’ll never know the answer.
The recent illusion that caught our attention was posted on Reddit, by the user Robert Maguire, and later started trending on Twitter. It’s a picture of a crow- or at least that’s what most users say.
However, if you pay closer attention you may end up seeing a quite different animal.
Robert Maguire writes:
This picture of a crow is interesting because…
— Robert Maguire (@RobertMaguire_) October 28, 2018
At first glance it looks like a black crow facing to the right but in reality, it is a black cat that is turning its back neck and looking into the camera.
Did you see it? And yes, another fun thing about illusions is that once you figure them out, you can’t unsee it!
Here is another one? Can you count the elephant’s legs?
You may hear answers such as 5 or 6, while others believe there are only four.
So what do you think?
Both these illusions fooled me! Now share them with your friends and pass on the challenge.
People tend to do things they believe will provide them with a happier and a healthier life, like having long walks, avoiding fast food and opting for healthier choices such as fruits and vegetables, quitting smoking, exercising, and a lot more. However, the secret behind extended life expectancy seems to be found in taking care and babysitting the grandchildren. Yes, you’ve heard that right. If you believed that young kids have the power to make you feel younger when you are around them, then you are not far from the truth.
When they get to bond with the grandchildren, the elderly are calmer and less depressed. The sad reality is that over the years people lose their friends, and sometimes the only companion remaining is the TV, so getting the chance of spending time with their children’s offspring is really refreshing and rewarding, as well as life changing.
This has been confirmed by the science as well. A group of researchers conducted a study involving 500 participants who were over 70 years old. The results imply that those who didn’t babysit their grandkids frequently were at greater risk of death than those who did.
According to Dr Ronan Factora
“there is a link between taking care of someone and reducing our overall stress levels.”
Doctors advise older people to stay physically active as much as possible, and is there anything better than running around the young rascals?
Physical and cognitive stimulation are critical in keeping the body healthy, and taking care of those you love the most is a perfect balance between exercising and having the time of your life, surrounded with smiles, hugs, and kisses.
So, if you are a grandparent, don’t hesitate a bit, and offer to babysit right away. I know I can’t wait for my kids to have children.
The relationship between grandparents and grandchildren is significant and pure, and it should be encouraged for the benefit of both.
We often take things life has to offer for granted. How is it that we are only grateful for what we have once we lose it? Many people don’t really understand how lucky they are for simply being healthy, having roof over their head and food on their table.
Life is sometimes cruel and when we hear of stories of people who lost it all, we do realize how fortunate we are and what are the real treasures in life, and that’s the well-being of the people we love.
Dr. Alastair McAlpine knows how to cherish the good things because he often witnesses devastating destinies and sees kids losing the battles with their illnesses. This man decided to share with the rest of the world the wisdom he learns from his terminally ill patients. These children are between four and nine years old and tell us what they believe makes life worth. You may get surprised how much shrewdness is hidden behind their words.
Dr. McAlpine is a palliative care physician in Cape Town, S. Africa, who eases the pain of kids who are dying.
Twitter
When he asked them what truly matters in life and what doesn’t, he hoped many people would hear what his patients had to say, but he didn’t think their words of wisdom would spread among people like a wildfire.
For an assignment, I asked some of my terminal paediatric palliative care patients what they had enjoyed in life, and what gave it meaning. Kids can be so wise, y’know. Here are some of the responses (Thread).
1. No one wishes they spend more time online.2. Animals make human lives better.3. They love their parents.4. Ice cream, duh.5. Reading makes a big difference.6. Worrying is a waste of time.7. Everybody loves the beach!8. Kindness matters.9. Laughter is the best medicine.10. Children love their toys.11. Family time is the best time.
Dr. McAlpine wrapped up his thread with one last important recap:
The way these children perceive life is what we all should live by. They remind us of the importance of the “little things” and how the essence of our existence is to love and be loved.
Please share their wise words with those you love!
Christmas is all about family, love, tradition, and finding yourself. Offering words of support and kindness to those whose self-esteem is a bit down because of various reasons, will help lift the person’s spirit during the most wonderful time of the year. Because, at the end of the day, everyone deserves a perfect holiday spent with those that matter.
Six-year-old Lindon was looking forward to the holiday, but it seemed there was something that bothered this young boy. Luckily, the good old Santa Claus was there to make things right and revive the faith in the magic of Christmas.
When he and his family went to RiverTown Crossings mall in Michigan, Landon couldn’t wait to get closer to the Big Man and ask him an important question.
Robert Maguire writes:
This picture of a crow is interesting because…
— Robert Maguire (@RobertMaguire_) October 28, 2018
At first glance it looks like a black crow facing to the right but in reality, it is a black cat that is turning its back neck and looking into the camera.
Did you see it? And yes, another fun thing about illusions is that once you figure them out, you can’t unsee it!
Here is another one? Can you count the elephant’s legs?
You may hear answers such as 5 or 6, while others believe there are only four.
So what do you think?
Both these illusions fooled me! Now share them with your friends and pass on the challenge.
According to Dr Ronan Factora
Physical and cognitive stimulation are critical in keeping the body healthy, and taking care of those you love the most is a perfect balance between exercising and having the time of your life, surrounded with smiles, hugs, and kisses.
So, if you are a grandparent, don’t hesitate a bit, and offer to babysit right away. I know I can’t wait for my kids to have children.
The relationship between grandparents and grandchildren is significant and pure, and it should be encouraged for the benefit of both.
2. Animals make human lives better.
3. They love their parents.
4. Ice cream, duh.
5. Reading makes a big difference.
6. Worrying is a waste of time.
7. Everybody loves the beach!
8. Kindness matters.
9. Laughter is the best medicine.
10. Children love their toys.
11. Family time is the best time.
Dr. McAlpine wrapped up his thread with one last important recap:
The way these children perceive life is what we all should live by. They remind us of the importance of the “little things” and how the essence of our existence is to love and be loved.
Please share their wise words with those you love!
