Spains happy little car-less city, published by my new favorite good news network of David Byrne from Talking HeadsÂ
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/spains-happy-little-carless-city/
Carless cities are hopefully going to a wave of the future.Â
They set up a huge floating corral system that traps floating plastics and discarded fishermen's nets and gear. Â Then garbage ships routinely pick up the garbage. Â Currently there is an "island" of garbage in the Pacific between Hawaii and Japan that is three times the size of France. Â
Beautiful. Â A Greek woman and the Jewish family she rescued and hid during WW2 were recently reunited in Israel. Â
That is amazing! I found a website that is devoted to JUST good news (goodnewsnetwork.org) (!) and there are teenagers who are working on a project from all over the planet to help clean up our oceans from plastic. (I also posted this article under climate topics)
https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/15-teens-awarded-for-each-launching-projects-to-protect-oceans-from-plastic /" target="true"> https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/15-teens-awarded-for-each-launching-projects-to-protect-oceans-from-plastic/
More and more young women will rise to power and an incredible emergence of female power in the days and times ahead.
With the amazing example of Greta Thunberg, the energies are growing exponentially in our world as women and young ones will show us the way.
Not only in politics which is largely based on old standards of male power and control but with the powers of the divine feminine and love, compassion, caring powers of the heart.
This young girl, 14 year old Alaina Gassler, watching her mother struggling to drive when Alaina, herself was too young to help her with the driving herself, instead found a huge way to cone up with other ways to help others with visual impairments through science and technology.
With all of her heart and love fir her mother and her mother's visual disabilities with peripheral vision she and the her team members just won all five top prizes in national STEM contest for middle schoolers.
As the awarding presenter said:Â
"Congratulations to Alaina, whose project has the potential to decrease the number of automobile accidents by reducing blind spots," said Maya Ajmera, President and CEO of the Society for Science & the Public and Publisher of Science News. "With so many challenges in our world, Alaina and her fellow Broadcom MASTERS finalists make me optimistic. I am proud to lead an organization that is inspiring so many young people, especially girls, to continue to innovate."
Winning all top 5 prizes is a very big deal, indeed.Â
And because it fits many of our predictions about women rising to power, I have begun a new thread with a broader and even more specific yet incredibly encompassing topic.
Women Rising to Rise of the Divine Feminine Through Vision, Compassion, and the Heart
This is good news about climate change, increasingly strong storms, sea level rise. It's a win-win solution that one community,  Charlotte North Carolina, is using to buy the homes of people living in floodplains, which helps those people, and then helps the community by keeping the property.  The people can then move out of the flood-prone areas  and the properties left behind can become valuable floodplains for containing future storms. https://reasonstobecheerful.world/free-the-floodplains/
It's described in David Byrne's (the rock star) on line media group: https://reasonstobecheerful.worl d" target="true">Reasons to be Cheerful.That you can subscribe to for free and get weekly good news like this piece.
If you want to regularly receive good news in your in box, there are three good news outlets we have found: https://reasonstobecheerful.worl d" target="true">David Byrnes' Reasons to be Cheerful
The Washington Post's weekly series The Optimist.Â
If you know of others, please let us know!
This story filled me up with joy.  It’s about a  day in Washington DC where 60 foster kids get permanently adopted by people who love them. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/life-comes-at-you-at-dc-adoption-day-children-move-out-of-the-foster-care-system-into-permanent-homes/2019/11/16/b9936b08-08b9-11ea-8ac0-0810ed197c7e_story.html?utm_campaign=the_optimist&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Newsletter&wpisrc=nl_optimist&wpmm=1
Absolutely wonderful story that touched my heart.
The story of the 2 year old coming in with nothing and no one but still having a big smile on his face and knowing what joy and love he created brought tears to my eyes.
And then so many kids getting homes at one time--just phenomenal!
???
The BBC has written a beautiful article on how for centuries Turkey  has been using the concept of "askıda ekmek"  or paying it forward, with bread.
http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20191125-turkeys-ancient-tradition-of-paying-it-forward
I've heard of a bakery here in Oregon following the idea of sharing day old bread by hanging it on street posts outside their businesses for people (especially the homeless population in their area) to help themselves.
But the cultural and religious history as explained in the article are truly interesting.
"Muslim hadiths, the collected sayings of the Prophet Muhammed, bread is nimet, a blessing sent from God."
And the concepts of breaking bread with others spreads the sacredness of the blessings of giving in many religions.
But the whole idea of "askıda ekmek"  or paying it forward with bread as a practice is wonderful.Â
Gives a whole new significant to bringing bread to a potluck or a hostess gift or even (pardon me fruitcake haters) to giving fruit breads for gifts. ?
My husband heard this on the human interest part of the nightly news yesterday and retold the story which I'd missed. But we were both so touched by this story when I caught it on a later news program that I looked for a link so others could read it here.
The love of this little boys teacher for her new student and her compassion for his dying mom after they'd only recentjy even moved to the town and her school where she taught just brings tears to my eyes.
@michele-b-here-in-the-forum
What a beautiful story! Â Thank you for sharing.
It's the heart touching stuff that opens us up and brings more light into our hearts. And not just thinking we can send it out to others with every post we respond to if we don't have it to give.
So, to anyone reading this, Happy U.S. Thanksgiving and may family or friends bring in laughter and connection with your hearts and theirs!
And remember there's so much good in so many people and there is still an awful lot of giving, loving, and sharing going on.
Good news, good people, good ideas!
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
"Life comes at you. You have to accept and embrace it." Â There's a lesson there. Â What a beautiful story.
@lynnventura
Oh Lynn, you are so right! It's the embracing that's most challenging to accept and sometimes you have to throw a lot of hissy fits or cry every day for months and months but finally, if you're ready and willing to change for your own sake as well as others a light comes on and enters within.
Oh, but it can be hard when its really really big things!
Loved reading this compilation of good news from the year:
https://futurecrun.ch/99-good-news-2019?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
A wonderful post and link to add in. Thank you!
Loved this article so much!
Nicole Krauss’s Beautiful Letter to Van Gogh on How to Break the Loop of Our Destructive Patterns
Â
My heart is feeling the beauty of so much hidden here within the words. There are so many artists among us ...for you: