In the wake of all the tragic events happening these past couple of months, I've found myself seriously losing faith in humanity. Yes, I try my absolute hardest to see the good in all people. However, when a person of honor and respect finds it reasonable to view a rapist as not a "threat to society," and when a preacher of God can publicly justify one of the most heinous and largest mass murders of our country as a "blessing," I find it hard to grasp whether there are any good people left in this world. In a desperation for some inspiration, I took to the Internet to find some things to be happy about this week and to hopefully restore some faith in humanity. I was not let down. Here are a few of my favorites.
1. A JetBlue flight staff's efforts to comfort a grieving grandmother of an Orlando shooting victim.
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On Facebook, a JetBlue flight attendant made a status about her flight to Orlando with the grandmother of one of the victims of the Pulse shooting. The staff on the flight wanted the grandmother to feel as much of their empathy as possible, accommodating to her every need so that she would not feel alone. The other passengers on the flight passed around pieces of paper to write messages for her, held a moment of silence for her grandson and every single passenger stopped to give her their condolences upon arrival in Orlando. Captured perfectly through her status, flight attendant Kelly Davis Karas writes, "In spite of a few hateful, broken human beings in this world who can all too easily legally get their hands on mass assault weapons -- people are kind. People do care. I am hopeful that someday soon we can rally together to make the world a safer place for all."
2. This "not-so-adoptable" dog finally getting a home.
Cue Sarah MchLachan and "In The Arms of An Angel" and grab your tissues. Last Thursday, Baltimore BARCS Animal Shelter posted to their Facebook about Baltimore Raven's offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley's visit to their shelter. In the heartwarming status, the shelter explains that Stanley came into their shelter with one criteria: to be shown a "not-so-adoptable" dog. Stanley walked away with his new forever friend, Winter, a six year old pup with all of the typically unwanted criteria. As a proud owner of a shelter dog, I was extremely touched by this story and the kindness in Stanley's decision to give what could have been a permanent shelter dog a forever home.
3. When 200 strangers attending a homeless and family-less World War II Vet's funeral.
Posted on TODAY, I was in awe of how complete strangers truly can become family even in the most dire of times. Major Jaspen Boothe, a director of a nonprofit homeless shelter for female verterans, was invited to the funeral of homeless veteran Serina Vine. However, Boothe later learned that only four other people had confirmed attendance. Saddened by this, Boothe took it upon herself to try and raise the numbers to show honor towards a former veteran, regardless of the fact that she never met her. Boothe posted on every veteran Facebook group she could find, not expecting the 200 strangers that would respond to her request. Vine was celebrated and honored, showing the strength of humanity and the bonds made by service.
