Good Things

Last modified on: 08/08/06

Kids of Divorce Thrive Too

Researcher E. Mavis Hetherington tracked nearly 1,400 families and more than 2,500 kids through several decades to gauge the impact of divorce on their lives. Hetherington writes in a new book, For Better or For Worse, “After forty years of research I have no doubts about the ability of divorce to devastate lives. But I also think much current writing has exaggerated its negative effects and ignored its sometimes considerable positive effects.”

She noted it has provided many women and girls “with a remarkable opportunity for life-transforming personal growth.”

More than 75% of the youngsters in her study did as well in their adult years as children from intact families.

Parents, and especially single moms, were the “unsung heroes” in her study. They “managed to provide the support, sensitivity, and engagement their children needed for normal development.”

SOURCE: The Good News Network

Good Things about Strangers on the Street

They rarely acknowledge your existence, and that's just fine with you.
Sometimes they're rude or pushy, but then sometimes you are too.
They're faceless to you as you are to them,
and they're hard to win over but quick to condemn.
Yet, every stranger you will ever meet
has a kindness and a beauty you just can't see.

Some good things about strangers on the street:

They show you the faces of the other human beings living in the world. Strangers are your silent companions on your journey through existence.

Someone you will never know, have never met and will probably never meet again, is concerned enough about you as a fellow human being to show you a small kindness, like holding a door open or pointing the way to your destination.

They often smile at you just because you smiled at them.

the foam on a rootbeer float

morning sunlight on a day you wake up early

Good Baby Things

the last page in a children's book
the laughter of a two-month old
the first time a newborn baby gets stinky feet
when he wants to share his thumb with you
watching someone else change the diaper