Quote of the Day: “If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember when people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act.” – Howard Zinn
Photo by: Constantinos Kollias (the Parthenon and Acropolis in Athens, Greece)
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To celebrate Veteran’s Day this week, a dedicated 50-year volunteer for Disabled American Veterans was gifted a new van so he could continue his labor of love.
Former US Marine Len Johnson drives to other veterans’ homes in Philadelphia to support them in any way he can—so people at the TrueCar website saw an opportunity to honor him.
At the age of 18, he served in Vietnam and the Lance corporal received multiple shrapnel wounds during a firefight causing him to lose the use of his left foot. Despite that, he serves local veterans and drops off toys for the children at the Catholic Workers Orphanage.
A video shows the moment Len was surprised with a new retrofitted Chevy Traverse from TrueCar’s 8th annual DrivenToDrive initiative—which is designed to honor the sacrifices made by service members and their families by supporting their mobility needs.
“I feel good knowing that I can finally retire my 20-year-old car and continue my service to the community with this donation,” said the 74-year-old vet who also has limited mobility in his right leg.
Johnson has been using his own vehicle with over 300,000 miles on it for all his volunteer activities, which include helping veterans who are incarcerated.
Over a lifetime of service, Len has been recognized with the Purple Heart, Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, and a Presidential Unit Citation.
“We’re honored to have the privilege to celebrate Marine veteran, Lance Corporal Len Johnson, who not only served in Vietnam but continues to serve various communities, including his fellow veterans,” said Mike Darrow, President and CEO of TrueCar. “We’re thrilled to be able to help him continue his mission by awarding him this new vehicle.”
WATCH the surprise below – and Learn More about DrivenToDrive’s past recipients…
SPREAD the Love by Sharing His Story of Kindness on Social Media…
Our partner Rob Brezsny provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)
Here is your weekly horoscope…
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of November 12, 2022
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
Here are tips on how to get the most out of the next three weeks: 1. Be a master of simmering, ruminating, marinating, steeping, fermenting, and effervescing. 2. Summon intense streams of self-forgiveness for any past event that still haunts you. 3. Tap into your forbidden thoughts so they might heal you. Discover what you’re hiding from yourself so it can guide you. Ask yourself prying questions. 4. Make sure your zeal always synergizes your allies’ energy, and never steals it. 5. Regularly empty your metaphorical trash so you always have enough room inside you to gleefully breathe the sweet air and exult in the earth’s beauty.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
“I straddle reality and the imagination,” says Sagittarian singer-songwriter Tom Waits. “My reality needs imagination like a bulb needs a socket. My imagination needs reality like a blind man needs a cane.” I think that’s great counsel for you to emphasize in the coming weeks. Your reality needs a big influx of energy from your imagination, and your imagination needs to be extra well-grounded in reality. Call on both influences with maximum intensity!
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Sometimes, Capricorn, you appear to be so calm, secure, and capable that people get a bit awed, even worshipful. They may even get caught up in trying to please you. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily—as long as you don’t exploit and manipulate those people. It might even be a good thing in the coming weeks, since you and your gang have a chance to accomplish big improvements in your shared resources and environment. It would take an extra push from everyone, though. I suspect you’re the leader who’s best able to incite and orchestrate the extra effort.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
If you have been posing as a normal person for too long, I hope you will create fresh outlets for your true weird self in the weeks ahead. What might that entail? I’ll throw out a couple of ideas. You could welcome back your imaginary friends and give them new names like Raw Goodness and Spiral Trickster. You might wear fake vampire teeth during a committee meeting or pray to the Flying Spaghetti Monster to send you paranormal adventures. What other ideas can you imagine about how to have way too much fun as you draw more intensely on your core eccentricities?
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
I suspect you will have metaphorical resemblances to a duck in the coming weeks: an amazingly adaptable creature equally at home on land, in the water, and in the air. You will feel comfortable anywhere you choose to wander. And I’m guessing you will want to wander farther and wider than you usually do. Here’s another quality that you and ducks will share: You’ll feel perfectly yourself, relaxed and confident, no matter what the weather is. Whether it’s cloudy or shiny, rainy or misty, mild or frigid, you will not only be unflappable—you will thrive on the variety. Like a duck, Pisces, you may not attract a lot of attention. But I bet you will enjoy the hell out of your life exactly as it is.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
When you Aries people are at your best, you are driven by impeccable integrity as you translate high ideals into practical action. You push on with tireless force to get what you want, and what you want is often good for others, too. You have a strong sense of what it means to be vividly alive, and you stimulate a similar awareness in the people whose lives you touch. Are you always at your best? Of course not. No one is. But according to my analysis of upcoming astrological omens, you now have extra potential to live up to the elevated standards I described. I hope you will take full advantage.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
In my experience, you Tauruses often have more help available than you realize. You underestimate your power to call on support, and as a result, don’t call on it enough. It may even be the case that the possible help gets weary of waiting for you to summon it, and basically goes into hiding or fades away. But let’s say that you, the lucky person reading this horoscope, get inspired by my words. Maybe you will respond by becoming more forceful about recognizing and claiming your potential blessings. I hope so! In my astrological opinion, now is a favorable time for you to go in quest of all the help you could possibly want. (PS: Where might the help come from? Sources you don’t expect, perhaps, but also familiar influences that expand beyond their previous dispensations.)
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Sometimes, life compels us to change. It brings us some shock that forces us to adjust. On other occasions, life doesn’t pressure us to make any shifts, but we nevertheless feel drawn to initiating a change. My guess is that you are now experiencing the latter. There’s no acute discomfort pushing you to revise your rhythm. You could probably continue with the status quo for a while. And yet, you may sense a growing curiosity about how your life could be different. The possibility of instigating a transformation intrigues you. I suggest you trust this intuition. If you do, the coming weeks will bring you greater clarity about how to proceed.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
“We suffer more often in imagination than in reality,” wrote ancient Roman philosopher Seneca. That’s certainly true about me. If all the terrible things I have worried about had actually come to pass, I would be unable to function. Luckily, most of my fears have remained mere fantasies. What about you, fellow Cancerian? The good news is that in the coming months, we Crabs will have unprecedented power to tamp down and dissipate the phantasms that rouse anxiety and alarm. I predict that as a result, we will suffer less from imaginary problems than we ever have before. How’s that for a spectacular prophecy?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Poet Matt Michael writes, “Sure, the way trees talk is poetry. The shape of the moon is poetry. But a hot dog is also poetry. LeBron James’ tomahawk dunk over Kevin Garnett in the 2008 NBA Playoffs is poetry. That pothole I always fail to miss on Parkman Road is poetry, too.” In accordance with current astrological omens, Leo, I’d love for you to adopt Michael’s approach. The coming days will be a favorable time to expand your ideas about what’s lyrical, beautiful, holy, and meaningful. Be alert for a stream of omens that will offer you help and inspiration. The world has subtle miracles to show you.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Virgo author Michael Ondaatje was born in Sri Lanka, but as a child moved to England and later to Canada. His novel Running in the Family describes his experiences upon returning to his native Sri Lanka as an adult. Among the most delightful: the deluge of novel sensory sensations. On some days, he would spend hours simply smelling things. In accordance with current astrological omens, I recommend you treat yourself to comparable experiences, Virgo. Maybe you could devote an hour today to mindfully inhaling various aromas. Tomorrow, meditate on the touch of lush textures. On the next day, bathe yourself in sounds that fill you with rich and interesting feelings. By feeding your senses like this, you will give yourself an extra deep blessing that will literally boost your intelligence.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
You evolved Libras understand what’s fair and just. That’s one of your potencies, and it provides a fine service for you and your allies. You use it to glean objective truths that are often more valuable than everyone’s subjective opinions. You can be a stirring mediator as you deploy your knack for impartiality and evenhandedness. I hope these talents of yours will be in vivid action during the coming weeks. We non-Libras need extra-strong doses of this stuff.
WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com
(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)
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Michael Balderson thought it would be fun to reveal his newly-shaven face to his baby during a little game of peek-a-boo.
The 42-year-old had worn a beard for the entirety of little Theo’s life, so the shock was evident on the child’s face.
Mom captured the moment on a video that shows the 11-month-old baby laughing during the game—until his dad dropped the towel to reveal his chin.
Theo’s face became a picture of confusion.
“His jaw dropped and hit the floor,” recalled Michael, a medical physicist in Phoenix, Arizona.
“He looked towards me in shock.”
“After about 20 seconds he realized it was still me, but even towards the end of filming, he didn’t seem completely convinced.”
“He has the cutest little sad face.”
The beard is growing back slowly now, as Michael’s wife prefers it.
“I think Theo prefers me with the beard too as he likes to grab and pull it.”
Watch the video below provided by SWNS News…
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The first sentence ever discovered that was written in the Canaanite language turns out to be a plea to eradicate beard lice.
Unearthed in the area of an ancient city in Israel by a team from Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Southern Adventist University from Tennessee, the ivory comb dates back 3,700 years.
The inscription on the ivory, derived from an elephant tusk, was translated to be, ‘May this tusk root out the lice of the hair and the beard’.
The alphabet, which is an ancestor to many modern alphabets, was invented around 1800 BCE and was used by the Canaanites and later by most other languages in the world. Until recently, no meaningful Canaanite inscriptions had been discovered in Israel, save only two or three words here and there—so researchers called the artifact an amazing discovery.
Dated to around 1700 BCE, the small comb was unearthed at Tel Lachish—an ancient Canaanite and Israelite city in the Shephelah region, on the South bank of the Lakhish River.
“This is the first sentence ever found in the Canaanite language in Israel. There are Canaanites in Ugarit in Syria, but they write in a different script, not the alphabet that is used till today,” said Professor Yosef Garfinkel. “The comb inscription is direct evidence for the use of the alphabet in daily activities some 3700 years ago. This is a landmark in the history of the human ability to write.”
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The letters of the inscription were engraved in a very shallow manner. It was excavated in 2017 but the letters were only noticed later during post-processing in 2022 by Dr. Madeleine Mumcuoglu.
The comb only measures 3.5 x 2.5 cm, and has teeth on both sides. Although their bases are still visible, the comb teeth themselves were broken in antiquity. The central part of the comb is somewhat eroded, possibly by the pressure of fingers holding the comb during haircare or removal of lice from the head or beard. The side of the comb with six thick teeth was used to untangle knots in the hair, while the other side, with 14 fine teeth, was used to remove lice and their eggs, much like today.
There are 17 Canaanite letters on the comb. They are archaic in form—from the first stage of the invention of the alphabet script. They form seven words in Canaanite, reading: “May this tusk root out the lice of the hair and the beard.”
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Ivory was a very expensive material and likely an imported luxury object. As there were no elephants in Canaan during that time period, the comb likely came from nearby Egypt—showing that even people of high social status suffered from lice.
The research team analyzed the comb itself for the presence of lice under a microscope and photographs were taken of both sides. Remains of head lice, 0.5–0.6 mm in size, were found on the second tooth. The climatic conditions of Lachish, however, did not allow preservation of whole head lice but only those of the outer chitin membrane of the nymph stage head louse.
Despite its small size, the inscription on the comb, which was deciphered by Dr. Daniel Vainstub at Ben Gurion University, has very special features, some of which are unique and fill in gaps and lacunas in our knowledge of many aspects of the culture of Canaan in the Bronze Age. For the first time, we have an entire verbal sentence written in the dialect spoken by the Canaanite inhabitants of Lachish, enabling us to compare this language in all its aspects with the other sources for it. Second, the inscription on the comb sheds light on some hitherto poorly attested aspects of the everyday life of the time, haircare and dealing with lice.
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Third, this is the first discovery in the region of an inscription referring to the purpose of the object on which it was written, as opposed to dedicatory or ownership inscriptions on objects. Further, the engraver’s skill in successfully executing such tiny letters (1–3 mm wide) is a fact that from now on should be taken into account in any attempt to summarize and draw conclusions on literacy in Canaan in the Bronze Age.
The site of Tel Lachish, which was a major Canaanite city state in the second millennium BCE and the second most important city in the biblical kingdom of Judah, is under the protection of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. The findings were published in the Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology.
NEVER Share Combs—But DO Share This Cool Story…
Quote of the Day: “Trust in oneself and one’s abilities is the secret of success.” – Michael Gelb
Photo by: Dollar Gill
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
An intermediate-mass black hole lurking undetected in a dwarf galaxy revealed itself to astronomers when it gobbled up an unlucky star that strayed too close.
The shredding of the star is known as a ‘tidal disruption event’ or ‘spaghettification’—and it produced a flare of radiation that briefly outshone the combined stellar light of the host dwarf galaxy, which could help scientists better understand the relationships between black holes and galaxies.
One of the biggest open questions in astronomy has been how supermassive black holes form, according to the co-author of the paper detailing the new discovery.
Astronomers detected the first signs of light as the black hole began eating a star—and it became a pivotal discovery because the duration of such an event can be used to measure mass.
The flare was captured by astronomers with the Young Supernova Experiment (YSE), a survey designed to detect cosmic explosions and transient astrophysical events.
An international team led by scientists at UC Santa Cruz, the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen, and Washington State University reported the discovery in a paper published this week in Nature Astronomy.
“This discovery has created widespread excitement because we can use tidal disruption events not only to find more intermediate-mass black holes in quiet dwarf galaxies, but also to measure their masses,” said coauthor Ryan Foley, an assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, who helped plan the YSE survey.
First author Charlotte Angus at the Niels Bohr Institute said the team’s findings provide a baseline for future studies of midsize black holes.
“The fact that we were able to capture this midsize black hole whilst it devoured a star offered us a remarkable opportunity to detect what otherwise would have been hidden from us,” she explained.
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“What is more, we can use the properties of the flare itself to better understand this elusive group of middle-weight black holes, which could account for the majority of black holes in the centers of galaxies.”
Supermassive black holes are found at the centers of all massive galaxies, including our own Milky Way. Astronomers conjecture that these massive beasts, with millions or billions of times the mass of the sun, could have grown from smaller “intermediate-mass” black holes with thousands to hundreds of thousands of solar masses.
One theory for how such massive black holes were assembled is that the early universe was rampant with small dwarf galaxies with intermediate-mass black holes. Over time, these dwarf galaxies would have merged or been gobbled up by more massive galaxies, their cores combining each time to build up the mass in the center of the growing galaxy. This merger process would eventually create the supermassive black holes seen today.
“If we can understand the population of intermediate-mass black holes out there—how many there are and where they are located—we can help determine if our theories of supermassive black hole formation are correct,” said coauthor Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UCSC and Niels Bohr Professor at the University of Copenhagen.
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But do all dwarf galaxies have midsize black holes?
Classic black hole hunting techniques, which look for actively feeding black holes, are often not sensitive enough to uncover black holes in the centers of dwarf galaxies. As a result, only a minuscule fraction of dwarf galaxies is known to host intermediate-mass black holes. Finding more midsize black holes with tidal disruption events could help to settle the debate about how supermassive black holes form.
Data from the Young Supernova Experiment enabled the team to unlock how big the black hole was—a method, until now, which had only been shown to work well for supermassive black holes.
“This flare was incredibly fast, but because our YSE data gave us so much early information about the event, we were really able to pin down the mass of the black hole using it,” Angus said.
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A cat traveled more than 280 miles to its old home before being reunited with her relocated owners and taken back to her new home—a whopping 13 months later.
Laëtitia De Amicis moved with her family and their three cats because of work reasons a year ago, leaving the Orne region of France.
The family took great care at their new location in Normandy, to keep Felys, Crapaud, and Cocci, inside the house, because they were worried they’d get lost in different surroundings.
But Cocci went missing in August 2021. The worried family with two teenage children had searched for Cocci for three months, with no luck.
To stop her kids from worrying, Laëtitia told them she thought Cocci had probably gone home to look for them back in Ambly—yet, not believing for a second it could be true.
Sure enough, a stranger found a stray cat more than 450 kilometers away, just five miles from their previous family home.
On October 2, Laëtitia saw a post shared on Facebook about a cat found in Souilly, and the stay-at-home mom recognized her straight away—although she “looked completely different.”
The adventurous feline was sent to the local veterinarian, who confirmed the missing animal was 10 years-old and had been spayed, just like Cocci.
Photos were exchanged and Laëtitia asked her father to go identify her. He was reluctant because he couldn’t believe it was possible that a cat had actually traveled across the country, but eventually agreed.
“When he called me that day, I saw my dad cuddling my cat on the video call,” said Laëtitia.
He tried to call the cat by different names and she only responded to Cocci.
“I was with my daughter. She looked and recognized her and burst into tears.”
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“My son was very skeptical until we went to pick her up. But as soon as we got there, she recognized us straight away.”
Cocci stayed with the vet for three weeks before the family was allowed to take her home. She weighed less than one kilogram (2.2 lbs), had fleas and worms, and an infection in her face.
“Since we brought her home, all is going well,” said Cocci’s mom. “She adapted again really well and is very cuddly.”
“It’s unbelievable. I still can’t believe it.”
SHARE This Purr-fect Reunion With Cat Lovers on Social Media…
A guided mindfulness-based stress reduction program was as effective as using ‘the gold-standard’ antidepressant drug—escitalopram—for patients with anxiety disorders, according to a first-of-its-kind, randomized clinical trial from Georgetown University Medical Center.
“Mindfulness meditation currently is reimbursed by very few (insurance) providers,” says Elizabeth Hoge, MD, director of the Anxiety Disorders Research Program and associate professor of psychiatry at Georgetown. “Our study provides evidence for clinicians, insurers, and health care systems to recommend and provide reimbursement for mindfulness-based stress reduction as an effective treatment for anxiety disorders.”
“A big advantage of mindfulness meditation is that it doesn’t require a clinical degree to train someone to become a mindfulness facilitator,” explained Dr. Hoge. “Additionally, sessions can be done outside of a medical setting, such as at a school or community center.”
Anxiety disorders can be highly distressing. They include generalized anxiety, social anxiety, panic disorder and fear of certain places or situations, including crowds and public transportation, all of which can lead to an increased risk for suicide, disability and distress, and therefore are commonly treated in psychiatric clinics.
Drugs that are currently prescribed for the disorders can be very effective—but many patients either have difficulty getting them, do not respond to them, or find the side effects (including nausea, sexual dysfunction, and drowsiness) a barrier to consistent treatment.
Standardized mindfulness-based interventions, such as mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), can decrease anxiety, but prior to this study, the interventions had not been studied in comparison to effective anti-anxiety drugs.
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The clinicians recruited 276 patients between June 2018 and February 2020 from three hospitals in Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C., and randomly assigned people to either MBSR or the common antidepressant drug escitalopram. MBSR was offered weekly for eight weeks via 2 1/2-hour in-person classes, plus a daylong retreat weekend class during the 5th or 6th week, and 45-minute daily home practice exercises.
Patients’ anxiety symptoms were assessed upon enrollment and again at completion of the intervention at eight weeks, along with post-treatment assessments at 12 and 24 weeks after enrollment—and the evaluators did not know which group the patients were in.
At the end of the trial, 102 patients had completed MBSR and 106 had completed their medication course. The patients had a mean age of 33, and included 156 women, who comprised 75% of the enrollees, mirroring the disease prevalence in the U.S.
Both groups saw a reduction in their anxiety symptoms (a 1.35 point average reduction for MBSR and 1.43 point reduction for the drug, which is a statistically equivalent outcome), dropping from a mean of about 4.5 for both, which translates to a significant 30% drop in the severity of peoples’ anxiety.
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Olga Cannistraro, 52, says she utilizes her MBSR techniques as needed, but more than a decade ago, the practice transformed her life. She was selected for an MBSR study after responding to an advertisement asking, “Do you worry?”
“I didn’t think of myself as anxious — I just thought my life was stressful because I had taken on too much,” she recalls. “But I thought, ‘Yeah, I do worry.’ There was something excessive about the way I responded to my environment.”
After participating in an earlier study led by Hoge, she learned two key MBSR techniques. “It gave me the tools to spy on myself. Once you have awareness of an anxious reaction, then you can make a choice for how to deal with it. It’s not like a magic cure, but it was a lifelong kind of training. Instead of my anxiety progressing, it went in the other direction, and I’m very grateful for that.”
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“It is important to note that although mindfulness meditation works, not everyone is willing to invest the time and effort to successfully complete all of the necessary sessions and do regular home practice, which enhances the effect,” Hoge said. “Also, virtual delivery via videoconference is likely to be effective, so long as the ‘live’ components are retained, such as question-and-answer periods and group discussion.”
Hoge, first author of the study published this week in JAMA Psychiatry, points out that there are many phone apps that offer guided meditation, however researchers don’t know how apps compare with the full in-person, weekly group class experience.
The researchers conducted a second phase of the study during the pandemic that involved moving the treatments to an online videoconference, and that will be the focus of future analyses. The researchers also hope to explore the effects of MBSR on sleep and depression.
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A baby born weighing less than a loaf of bread at just 535 grams has finally returned home to sleep in her own room.
Lauren Ormston’s pregnancy was initially smooth sailing. All her scans came back healthy—even the one at 20-weeks—and she expected to welcome her baby on July 1st.
But on March 4, she began to get severe pains in her abdomen and when she went to the hospital in Surrey, England, she learned she was going into premature labor.
She was immediately induced and two hours later gave birth to baby Isla, weighing just 1.18-lb. Doctors told the 27-year-old and her fiancé that the baby had only a 10% chance of survival due to her size. Laura could only cuddle Isla for a few minutes before she was taken to a ventilator.
“I lived each day, never knowing if she would make it,’ said the first-time-mom.
Baby Isla was later diagnosed with a level two bleed on the brain and a hole in the heart.
”She looked so small and fragile, like she would snap at the slightest bit of movement,” Lauren, from Hartley Wintney, Hampshire, told SWNS news. “I was so worried, but I knew my baby girl was a fighter.”
At six weeks, mother and daughter finally had their first cuddle since the birth. “Her little hand was barely the size of the tip of my husband’s pinky finger!”
”It felt like she’d never make it, but to see her now is like a miracle.”
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After spending four months in the hospital, Isla was finally discharged in July, weighing 10 lbs 8oz.
It was “rollercoaster,” but Lauren is now over the moon that Isla is home and happy.
“I’m still in disbelief that our scan at 20 weeks came back fine, and I was rushed to hospital just two weeks later. It’s so important to pay attention to those pains and trust your gut.”
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”Isla is a bundle of joy, and we couldn’t be happier with the little girl we have now.
“We are so proud of her for fighting and now we get to enjoy every minute at the comfort of our own home.”
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Quote of the Day: “We may sometimes take for granted the many liberties we enjoy, but they have all been earned through the ultimate sacrifice paid by so many of the members of our armed forces.” – Charlie Dent (On Veterans ‘Remembrance’ Day)
Photo by: Derek Mack
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
Volunteers carved a 100-foot mural of poppies onto a beach in a poignant tribute to the fallen ahead of Remembrance Day, November 11, which commemorates the formal end of the First World War on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.
Retired doctor and beach artist Claire Eason led the team who used garden rakes to create the poppies beneath a dove of peace.
Remembrance Day is also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a red poppy to honor armed forces members who died in the line of duty—a tradition inaugurated by King George V in 1919.
The group spent four hours painstakingly drawing the huge flowers onto the sand at Beadnell Bay in Northumberland, England, before the tide washed them away.
In a heartwarming tribute under the poppies were placed 104 flags designed by pupils at two local primary schools.
Each of the ‘poppy flags’ represented a year since the end of ‘the Great War’.
“We were so lucky,” Claire said after the rainy Sunday public art event. “We had a little weather window at exactly the right time, and it all came together amazingly by sheer luck.”
Claire mapped out the poppy design on her computer, then then used stakes and string to form a grid on the beach to bring her design to life.
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“The design only lasts until the next high tide, but it is all about enjoying the experience and taking some pictures, which you have forever.”
“It’s also very poignant because the sense of things being impermanent reflect how fragile life is,” added the 58-year-old. “It’s the sense of appreciating what we have now and what new opportunities the new tide brings.
“The thing that has been special about this project it is involving youngsters and passing on the message of Remembrance—and it’s never more important than this year where Europe has potential war hanging over it with the conflict in Ukraine.
“It’s a very timely reminder that we should really value peace.”
The beach artist founded Soul2Sand, a service that will create a tributes for special occasions or loved ones on English beaches. Recently she carved a portrait of Queen Elizabeth in September that the tide washed away, following the beloved leader’s passing.
Watch the poignant video from Soul2Sand below…
CARVE a Salute to the Ultimate Sacrifice By Sharing Poppies on Social Media…
A new survey shows that most people wish they had asked relatives more about their life while they were alive—after discovering interesting stories once they had passed.
In the lead up to Remembrance Day (11/11), when people honor war heroes on November 11, the poll of 2,000 adults found that 53 percent had learned something not previously known about a family member, but couldn’t ask them about it because they’d died.
The stories included wartime experiences, their childhood, and where they had travelled. Half the time, the tales were uncovered through speaking to others who knew relatives when they were younger. And, half of those respondents said it left them with more unanswered questions, but feeling closer to their family.
The survey, commissioned by Ancestry.co.uk, found a further 43 percent discovered a revelation when clearing out their relative’s home—and more than 40 percent of those polled admitted they don’t really know their family’s history.
A quarter of those polled regretted not speaking to their relatives more about their wartime stories in particular and 22% would love to discover an unknown war related tale within their family history.
Poet Nikita Gill wrote a new emotive poem about wartime stories, called Who You Are. She said, “Both my grandfathers were in the Indian Army during the Second World War, so I feel like I wanted to do justice to the stories of ordinary people who lived during a time of great change and uncertainty.
Simon Pearce, military history expert at Ancestry, said: “The wartime records available on Ancestry is full of fascinating accounts that shed light on how our ancestors once lived… and showcases the importance of having those discussions now to ensure these stories live on.”
The survey found that such discoveries left people feeling intrigued (32%), shocked (26%) and proud (25%).
The market research firm OnePoll found that while 29% would like to discover a family war story about life on the front line, one-quarter would enjoy hearing a love story, two in ten would ask about childhood hobbies, what jobs they had (19%) and where they met their partner (19%).
WATCH: Medals Found in Dumpster Reveal Her Dad Was a WWII Hero But Never Told Anyone
Ancestry.co.uk does offer a 14-day free trial if you want to explore your family’s wartime—and playtime—stories. (GNN is not affiliated with the company in any way.)
HAVE You Learned Your Family Stories? Tell Us in the Comments and on Social Media…
A South Carolina community came together this week to make 10,000 sandwiches in one day to give away to local food banks, schools, soup kitchens, and shelters.
The 200 volunteers in Greenville were also honoring the amazing legacy of Eugenia Duke, a local woman who bucked every norm 100 years ago to start a business on her own—and support soldiers in World War I.
In 1917, Eugenia Duke and her daughter Martha began selling homemade sandwiches for 10 cents each at Army canteens to make extra money for their family in Greenville during the war.
Her pimento cheese, bacon, and mayonnaise sandwiches were quite popular and she got so many requests from soldiers at nearby Camp Sevier that she started bottling her homemade mayo four years later.
Her Duke’s Mayonnaise became a beloved condiment that is still sold on grocery shelves in much of the United States
The volunteers used around one ton of homemade pimento and cheddar cheese salad to assemble 10,000 sandwiches inside the historic pavilion downtown which is the same location of the original Duke’s Mayonnaise factory.
They were following in Mrs. Duke’s footprints of kindness, too: She famously made 10,000 sandwiches in 1 day to support soldiers during World War 1.
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The whole community helped out, with Meals on Wheels delivering the sandwiches, Loaves & Fishes distributing the food, and Duke’s providing 100 gallons of its famous sauce. Other local hospitality companies contributed equipment and manpower to VisitGreenvilleSC, which organized the entire operation.
They followed the original recipe of Eugenia’s BPT (Bacon, Pimento Cheese, and Tomato Sandwich), which is as follows: 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese; 1 cup shredded white cheddar cheese; 1/3 cup mayonnaise; ¼ cup diced tomatoes, ¼ cup diced sweet red peppers; and ¼ cup bacon bits.
The Good Samaritans formed assembly lines and worked tirelessly for six straight hours to hit the 10,000-sandwich goal, and feeding thousands of Greenvillians with the gourmet sandwiches during this season of giving—while honoring one of America’s earliest female entrepreneurs, Eugenia Duke.
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“It’s time for poor, working-class, and young people to have a seat at the table,” said Maxwell Alejandro Frost while campaigning for the US House of Representatives in Orlando, Florida.
And, his time will start in January when he’s sworn in as the first Generation-Z member of Congress, the month in which he turns 26.
He wants to stay true to his roots—and activist resume—by fighting to end gun violence and end the climate crisis.
“I know how to hold power to account,” the Cuban-American says on his website. “I organized in the movement that restored voting rights to 1.6 million Floridians with previous felonies. I’ve led thousands of young activists in the fight against gun violence as the National Organizing Director of March for Our Lives.”
Frost won a 10-way Democratic primary in August for the nomination to fill the seat vacated by former Rep. Val Demings, who decided to challenge Sen. Marco Rubio in Florida’s U.S. Senate election and lost on Tuesday.
“History was made tonight,” Frost tweeted. “I am beyond thankful.”
RELATED: Youth Crime in the U.S. Has Plummeted 78% Since 1994, Which Counters the Usual Narrative
Frost responded in a later tweet to President Biden who gave him a shout out during his post-election press conference, saying: “He’s not just congratulating me, he’s congratulating the millions of young people who proved last night that our generation will be a driving force for change and progress in our country.”
Watch his post-election interview with CNN…
.@MaxwellFrostFL, the first Generation Z member who will be elected to Congress, says there "is a lot we need to do" on gun legislation.
— CNN (@CNN) November 9, 2022
"Universal background checks is something we need to pass." https://t.co/3hT3x99k1V pic.twitter.com/qGxhScOAqr
Young voters became the bulwark for Democrats against the predicted ‘Red Wave’ in several key elections this week, even though just 27 percent of the US youth between 18 and 29 cast their ballot in this year’s midterm election (which generally has lower turnouts than presidential years).
LOOK: Indiana Boys Hop Off Their Bikes to Stand at Attention For Military Funeral Happening on Their Route
Still, more people under 25 registered to vote for this midterm election than in the Presidential election in 2018, according to research at Tufts University. Maybe a win for their fellow Gen-Z-er will inspire more of them to run for office.
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Quote of the Day: “I thought my fire was out, and I stirred the ashes… I burnt my fingers.” – Antonio Machado
Photo by: David Schultz
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
A young father’s recovery is baffling doctors after he awoke from a coma and discovering he had artistic talents like never before—and now he’s a professional carpenter and model builder.
Moe Hunter was struck down by a rare form bacterial meningitis and tuberculosis in his brain that left him fighting for his life in 2004.
He spent more than a month in a coma, and doctors performed lifesaving surgery at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital, installing a shunt to drain fluid from his brain.
Before his diagnosis, Moe had no interest in crafts or any notable artistic ability.
He awoke from brain surgery and recovered much more quickly than expected: “My doctor said that I was a walking miracle.”
Not only that, he soon left his friends and family scratching their heads at his display of creativity. The 38-year-old suddenly had an inexplicable talent for drawing, painting, and model building—despite ‘being rubbish’ at art in school.
“I really wasn’t creative before in the slightest. I was more interested in going outside, football, and computer games.
“I look at all of my stuff now and I’m, like, ‘never in a trillion years could I do this stuff’. I have no idea how it happened.
“When I spoke to the neurologist he just said ‘enjoy it’, and said there’s so much about the brain they still can’t decipher and this is just a phenomenon.
“Nobody has really given a medical explanation for it. I just know comas can do crazy things to a human brain. They said there’s many stories and theories over the years about people having awakened from comas with skills… even speaking other languages.”
The first thing he drew afterwards was a sketch of a character in the video game, Legend of Zelda—and his mother immediately asked, ‘when did you learn how to draw?’
“It was crazy, I haven’t stopped since then. I just found I had this passion which never existed in me before.”
He used his new skills to embark on a career as a self-employed carpenter and began building intricate model replicas of his favorite superheroes and film icons.
The married father-of-one has since sold pieces of his artwork and displayed his creations at Comic-Con events across the UK.
His home in Hereford, England, is now adorned with his paintings, illustrations, and Star Wars models—from a life-size R2-D2 to a miniature Chewbacca. Next will be a Pod racer from Episode 1.
“I just feel incredibly lucky.”
WATCH: Jedi Landscaper Sets Up Rows of Precisely Spaced Brick Dominoes – And the Ending is Spectacular
“After being given this second chance at life and a new talent, I wanted to make the most of it so I became self-employed as a carpenter making toy boxes. This wasn’t something I could have done before, and it was nice. I really enjoyed it.
“I’ve met some of the cast of Star Wars—and the man who made Darth Vader’s helmet came and spoke to me. I’ve been really lucky where this new talent has taken me.
WATCH: Stepdad Finally Launch His Floating Suit Made of 1,100 Corks, After 3 Years of Secret Work
“I’ve written my own comic story too, so it has extended to creative writing, which I never would have touched before. I’m also now writing a screenplay,” added Mr. Hunter.
“I’m just doing what my neurologist told me to do and just trying to enjoy it.”
“Even to this day some of my family can’t believe it, they’re still completely shocked.
IT’S NO Mystery People Will Enjoy This Miraculous Recover, So Share it on Social Media…
A truck driver from Greenville, Texas, was named a ‘Highway Angel’ for stopping his travels to administer aid to two injured drivers after witnessing an incredible crash.
One morning two weeks ago, Tony Doughty was driving eastbound on Interstate 40 near Albuquerque, when he witnessed a red car ram into a Jeep while going around 70 miles per hour. He watched the Jeep flip over before the car crashed into a concrete barrier.
The accident unfolded while Tony was driving on the opposite side of the highway. While most people would call 911, how many people would pull over, instead of continuing down the road?
Doughty, a 15-year trucker who drives for Minnesota’s Bay & Bay Transportation, stopped in his tracks.
“I jumped out of the truck and grabbed my EMT bag,” said Doughty, who’s been a volunteer firefighter for 12 years.
Just as he was about to cross the highway to get to the crash site, a police officer who also happened to be driving by, stopped.
When discovering Doughty’s first responder background, he said, “You’re coming with me, buddy!” and the men ran to the crash scene.
WATCH: Hero Trucker Ignores Own Safety to Save Utility Worker Stuck in a Bucket With Fire Blazing Below
The driver of the red Chevy had a broken leg, so Doughty put a splint on it while the man in his 30s admitted to being either withdrawing or overdosing on fentanyl and methadone.
“I got him kind of stable,” said Doughty, who then ran over to the driver of the Jeep “who was still flipped over on the road”. Thankfully, the young woman was visibly shaken, but did not sustain any serious injury.
Doughty partnered with the police to relay vitals of the crash victims to their dispatch, and stayed on the scene until the ambulance departed.
As a driver with over two million safe driving miles under his belt, the exemplary trucker is always ready to offer aid during accidents.
“I wear two hats,” Doughty says. “I’m wired to stop and help in situations like this.”
Since the Highway Angels program was started 25 years ago by the Truckload Carriers Association, 1,300 professional truck drivers have been recognized for exemplary kindness, courtesy, and courage displayed while on the job.
LOOK: Hero Jumps Into Maryland Bay to Save Toddler’s Life After Crash Flings Her Car Seat Into the Water
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The Phase 1 trial has begun to test a novel pill that was effective in pre-clinical studies against reoccurring solid tumors from breast, prostate, brain, ovarian, cervical, skin and lung cancers.
City of Hope, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the U.S., announced last month that the first patient to receive its novel, promising cancer medicine is doing well—and they are currently recruiting people for the study “who the therapies of tomorrow today.”
Linda Malkas, Ph.D. has been working on the research and subsequent discovery and development of AOH1996 for 20 years says the drug was named after Anna Olivia Healey, a young girl born 26 years ago who unfortunately was not able to beat cancer.
Malkas believed that proliferating cell nuclear antigen’ (PCNA), which plays an essential role in the replication and repair of cells, would be a less toxic cancer therapy that targets mutated cancer cells while leaving normal cells alone.
The treatment has been shown in preclinical research to target PCNA and inhibit the growth and spread of a broad range of human cancer cells.
She says AOH1996 is not toxic to healthy cells and that treatment with this medicine both pauses cell DNA synthesis and inhibits DNA repair, leading to a type of cell death known as apoptosis in the cancer cells.
“Imagine cancer as the water filling up a bathtub. Left unchecked, the tumors or water will eventually overflow and damage other parts of your home. The treatment my team at City of Hope created is akin to a watchful homeowner who shuts the water off—stopping the spread of tumors to other parts of the metaphorical house—and then drains the tub, eliminating the cancer,” said the professor of molecular oncology.
“By targeting PCNA, we are inhibiting the complex machinery to stop cellular growth and proliferation,” said City of Hope’s Vincent Chung, M.D. “This is a new way of trying to kill cancer cells or at least to slow it down,” added the researcher and principal investigator in the clinical trial.
Over the next two years, the trial is expected to continue testing the safety, effectiveness, and tolerated dosage of the pill, which is licensed by City of Hope to RLL, the biotechnology company co-founded by Malkas. And they are looking for more patients.
Eligible patients include adults with solid tumors who have not found standard treatments effective. Participating patients will be asked to take the medication in pill form twice a day.
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Individuals interested in this clinical trial should review the eligibility requirements at clinicaltrials.gov. If they believe they are eligible, they can call 626-218-1133 or visit City of Hope’s clinical trials webpage.
Malkas said other targeted therapies, like checkpoint inhibitors, that inhibit the growth and spread of cancer have helped innumerable cancer patients, adding that perhaps one day AOH1996 will be a U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved inhibitor that could be used in combination with existing therapies to both enhance cancer-killing effects as well as decrease side effects related to lifesaving cancer treatments.
With the infrastructure, experts, and support of City of Hope, Malkas was able to commercialize her basic research and manufacture the medicine, moving her promising laboratory discovery into a clinical trial in the Los Angeles area.
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A mom claims pumpkin helped save her dog’s life, and veterinarians were stunned when he miraculously recovered from ‘terminal’ cancer.
Martha Haslett assumed it was hopeless when vets predicted that her family’s beloved dog Koda would have less than 12 months left to live after a mass was found on his intestine in October 2019.
“We were devastated, said the 63-year-old from Lewes, Delaware. “We loved this little guy and we didn’t know what to do.”
But plucky Koda, diagnosed with intestinal cancer, defied the odds and the retired teacher believes a key factor was the orange squash he chomped-down on daily when he refused all other foods.
He lost a lot of weight during the chemo—down from 23-lbs to just 16—so they needed to find a way to encourage him to eat more.
“We can’t remember where we got the idea but one of his prescription dog foods made him constipated and we always knew that pumpkins were good for dogs, so we started adding a scoop to his meals three times a day.”
Koda gobbled-up the pumpkin, which is rich in vitamins A and C that can help boost the immune system.
“We were just trying to think of anything that could boost his health that would be a benefit. Without giving him the pumpkins there’s a higher chance he would have died.
LOOK: My Rescue Dog Saved Me By Sniffing Out My Cancer
“He’d become such a part of our family and we just didn’t want to lose him.”
The mother-of-two started buying tins of canned pumpkin from Aldi—and hundreds of cans later, Koda was given the ‘all-clear’ by oncologists this September.
Martha wasn’t the only one to see it as miraculous. Veterinary doctors saw that the pooch had beat all the odds, and told Martha to ‘keep up’ whatever she’s doing.
“The oncologist did the scan and was shocked because it’s an incredibly rare, aggressive form of cancer–and chemotherapy is usually not effective,” recalled Martha.
“My daughter was there and we all had tears in our eyes. It was more than I ever could have hoped for.”
Martha would definitely recommend a pumpkin diet for any dog because it’s not only nutritious but good for digestion.
After being given the all-clear a month ago, Koda still munches on some pumpkin three times a day to keep him in tip-top condition.
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