The Week in Good News: Paris Spider-Man, Mosul, ‘Manhattanhenge’
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Version 0 of 1. Sometimes it seems as if we’re living under a constant barrage of heavy news. But it isn’t all bad out there. This feature is meant to send you into the weekend with a smile, or at least a lighter heart. Want to get The Week in Good News by email? Here’s the sign-up. Here are seven great things we wrote about this week: They’re calling him Spider-Man. Mamoudou Gassama, 22, a migrant from Mali, arrived in France in September without documentation. But when he saw a 4-year-old boy clinging to the edge of a balcony last Saturday, he didn’t hesitate to act. “I saw all these people shouting, and cars sounding their horns,” he said. “So I crossed the road to go save him.” Mr. Gassama climbed the building in a remarkable display of speed, athleticism and courage, and he pulled the child to safety. His good deed did not go unrewarded. Mr. Gassama met with President Emmanuel Macron of France, who granted him the opportunity to live legally in France. Mr. Macron said in a statement that Paris firefighters were “eager to welcome” Mr. Gassama into their ranks. Read more » Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has two impressive achievements under his belt. He’s a lineman for a professional football team, and he’s the only active N.F.L. player who’s also a medical doctor. His road to becoming a doctor was very different from the typical medical school journey. Playing football for McGill University in Montreal, he’d often show up to practices in scrubs. The day he was drafted, Mr. Duvernay-Tardif had been helping perform an emergency C-section. “This is the first time I’ve ever been really, really proud of myself,” he said after graduating from McGill. “This is the first time that I feel like I’ve made it.” Mr. Duvernay-Tardif and the Coach Andy Reid of the Chiefs recently began talking about having “M.D.” added to the back of his jersey. An official request has been made with the league. Read more » Less than a year ago, the Iraqi city emerged from a nearly nine-month battle to retake it from the Islamic State. The scars of war are still there, but the people of Mosul may finally be experiencing a greater feeling of security and hope. There’s a sense that, at last, the city is unshackled from criminal gangs and hard-line Islamist factions. New businesses are opening, and people are staying out late for the first time in years. Drinking in bars and flamboyant wedding celebrations, both forbidden under ISIS, are now realities. There’s even a new amusement park on the eastern side of the Tigris River. Read more » Makeup-free, unairbrushed skin is rarely perfect. And now, acne acceptance may be gaining traction, fueled by the body positivity movement and a backlash against unrealistic advertising and photo-editing apps. Justin Bieber (who recently posted on his Instagram Story that “pimples are in”), Kendall Jenner, SZA and other young celebrities have openly embraced their acne on social media. Makeup-free selfies and beauty trends that highlight “flaws” like acne, freckles, dark circles and rosacea also point to how much has shifted. “Celebrities have the same insecurities, so for them to give people the opportunity to see their human qualities, it changes everything,” Matt Traube, a psychotherapist who specializes in skin conditions, said. Read more » Dolester Miles has spent the past 30 years making Southern desserts for the same restaurant in Alabama. She’s now being recognized for her craft by the James Beard Foundation. The mere sight of her coconut pecan cakes and lemon meringue tarts is enough to warm my Southern heart. Her win is part of a sweeping adjustment to the Beard Foundation lens as the restaurant industry reckons with issues of gender and race. More women and minorities won this year than ever before. “Just do hard work and keep reading books and keep learning,” Ms. Miles said. “That’s what I do every day because that’s my philosophy.” Read more » The sun may have been hidden by haze this time around, but it was still a shared experience: the opportunity to take what many call the best sunset picture of the year. For two days every spring and summer, the sunset lines up with Manhattan’s street grid to create a symmetrical, gorgeous display. Even if you can’t get the perfect shot, who needs a better excuse to stand and watch the sunset with others? “I’m going to say something silly,” Miguel Huaman, a salesman, said as he watched. “I think there’s love in there. Beauty always goes where love goes.” Read more » Better yet, these workouts don’t have to be scary. Our columnist overcame her fears about intense bursts of exercise by using a heart monitor as she pedaled on a stationary bike. And she had fun. Research shows that H.I.I.T. workouts are the most efficient way to exercise and reverse the signs of aging within cells. They’re also faster and more interesting than long slogs on the treadmill. Why not give it a try? Read more » What would you like to see here? Email us at goodnews@nytimes.com. You can enjoy more of this feature at nytimes.com/goodnews. |