Broken Bodies, Broken Minds, Amazing Spirits
"Yesterday I went to the nursing home to visit my step mom's grandma. She just got out of the hospital recently where she underwent some serious operations. I wanted to surprise her after work so I stopped by for a quick visit. When I got there she was happy to see me. We hugged, kissed and exchanged greetings. Then I heard a woman crying. It was my great grandma's roommate. The curtain was drawn ... posted on Mar 18 2012, 5,810 reads

3 Little Monks and a Moment of Truth
"This is Ankur," our host Sachi had said, with the catching enthusiasm she's known and loved for, "He's an amazing photographer and has recently gone totally 'gift economy'." Meaning that he offers his photography unconditionally as a gift, inviting recipients to 'pay it forward.' I look over at the young man seated in front of me. An unguarded face lit now by a smile both shy and warm. "What's yo... posted on Mar 13 2012, 40,142 reads

A Heart Touched By Music
"The way she was singing comforted me a bit. I stood there watching her play for about fifteen minutes, thinking that it must take courage to perform on your own in the middle of a crowded New York ferry terminal. So I stood there listening. She must have felt my presence because she would occasionally look in my direction. By now I was telling myself that if she could perform in front of hundreds... posted on Mar 07 2012, 5,711 reads

Knock Knock
As an actor, singer, writer, and composer, Daniel Beaty has worked throughout the world in a variety of styles ranging from solo concerts to theatre to one-man plays to a gig at the White House. But here he is at a Def Jam Poetry contest, sharing about a topic near and dear to his heart -- the essence of a father-son bond. In this 3-minute video, he delivers nothing short of a riveting, electrifyi... posted on Feb 26 2012, 5,634 reads

30 kidneys, 60 lives: A Kindness Chain
"A year ago, Rick Ruzzamenti decided in an instant to donate his left kidney to a stranger. In February 2011, the desk clerk at Ruzzamenti's yoga studio told him she had recently donated a kidney to an ailing friend. Ruzzamenti, 44, had never even donated blood, but the story so captivated him that two days later he placed a call to Riverside Community Hospital to ask how he might do the same thin... posted on Feb 24 2012, 5,420 reads

A Different Kind of Super Bowl Story
They may be the most amazing story at the Super Bowl, this immigrant father who sought the American dream and the son he can't see play in America's biggest game. That's a small joy most parents take for granted: seeing your child play a game. Watching him grow in sports over the years. Enjoying the best moments as much as he does. But Jean Pierre-Paul is led by the arm down a small hallway of his... posted on Feb 22 2012, 8,787 reads

A Love Warrior's Incredible Generosity
Raghu Makwana lost his legs to polio as a child. But his heart was intact and growing bigger by the day. When a few students found him arranging people's footwear outside a local temple, they were struck by his sparkling intelligence and genuine warmth. They arranged to have him join a non-profit at the Gandhi Ashram in India. The move would bring Raghu's latent capacity for servant-leadership to ... posted on Feb 13 2012, 5,780 reads

4 iPhones and a Subway Serendipity
In October 2010, little-known New York City band, Atomic Tom, had their instruments stolen. But a little bit of bad luck wasn't going to stop these musicians from doing what they love. Riding over the Manhattan Bridge on the B train, the band gave an impromptu performance of "Take Me Out" ... using four iPhones to simulate the drums, guitars, and piano they had recently lost. And they caught it on... posted on Feb 12 2012, 5,578 reads

A Survivor's Sunrise Ritual
No two sunrises are ever the same. Debbie Wagner knows this better than almost anyone else. With earnest devotion, she has risen in the darkness more than 2,200 times so she could observe and paint the sunrise. She's rarely missed a morning since December 2005; for Wagner, the daily ritual is sustaining. "As a brain-tumor survivor, I lost so many of the loves I had, like reading and writing and ma... posted on Feb 06 2012, 4,991 reads

Vinny Ferraro: The Heartful Dodger
One bitter night, in the rough end of New Haven, fifteen-year-old Vinny Ferraro and his gang were hanging out as usual by the projects when a chance encounter with a homeless man (who they were assaulting) changed the course of the rest of his life. "I didn't know what compassion meant when I was fifteen. But I knew that that homeless guy had seen my heart. And that was scary. I had done my best t... posted on Feb 02 2012, 16,425 reads