In this issue of The Upworthiest, Heather Wake remembers Dolly Parton through seven acts of generosity she kept to herself. Also inside, a vegan of 14 years decides she is ready for steak, and her husband is somehow more nervous than she is. Plus, 12 awkward habits that signal a sharper mind and Bryce Dallas Howard reconnects with a high-school English teacher who made an impact on her life.
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A portrait of Dolly Parton from 1977, and at the "Blue Smoke" World Tour. | ||
7 times Dolly Parton quietly made other people’s lives better | ||
She repeatedly chose to make the world a better place. | ||
By Heather Wake | ||
It takes a certain kind of celebrity to be loved by everyone. Country music icon and ultimate multi-hyphenate badass Dolly Parton, whose death in Nashville was announced today, was one of those celebrities. | ||
The reason she is so loved is pretty simple: she repeatedly chose to make the world a better place. She did so not only through how she used her wealth but also through how she spoke with people. | ||
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In this episode of My Favorite Teacher, Bryce Dallas Howard reunites with the teacher who believed in her and made her believe in herself. Together, they reflect on Bryce’s early writing, fond memories, and the impact a great teacher can have.
I love this for Harold. 😆
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A couple has the cutest reaction to steak-related emotional overload. | ||
Vegan of 14 years moved to tears after trying her husband’s steak. People love his reaction. | ||
“May this kind of love find me.” | ||
By Heather Wake | ||
After being vegan for fourteen years, a woman tried home-cooked steak, and was moved to tears. Her raw reaction, as well as her sweet husband’s support, is both really wholesome and incredibly relatable. | ||
In the clip, the woman shared how she longed to have shared food experiences with her husband as he prepared her meal. Any couple where one partner has a dietary restriction has felt this specific kind of longing. It’s…not fun. | ||
As the meat sizzled in oil, the woman said “I’m sooo scared.” The husband, quipped, “I’m more nervous than you are!” | ||
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An Upworthiest Quiz
What did "awkward" originally mean?
Yesterday’s Results
In yesterday’s issue, we shared Mark Wales’s story of the 465 bars of gold pulled out of HMS Edinburgh, 800 feet down in the Barents Sea.
And we asked: The deepest shipwreck ever identified lies at roughly what depth? About 30% of you correctly knew (or guessed, as some in the comments confessed to) that the answer was 22,600 feet. If you went with 12,500, you were thinking of the Titanic. The record belongs to the USS Samuel B. Roberts, a WWII destroyer escort resting in two pieces on a slope off the Philippines, more than four miles down.
8,000 feet (12.3%)
12,500 feet (44.3%)
22,600 feet (30.2%)
35,000 feet (13.2%)
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12 seemingly ‘awkward’ behaviors that might just mean you’re highly intelligent | ||
Your brain is not broken. It’s just built differently. | ||
By Kat Hong | ||
Taking a thoughtful pause before responding. Wanting to understand the “why” before saying yes. Replaying a conversation in your head so many times, the room starts to spin. | ||
In a culture obsessed with instant reactions, being a person who treads softly, asks pertinent questions, and is genuinely curious is an under-appreciated advantage. It can even feel like a flaw. | ||
However, psychology keeps arriving at the same conclusion: the habits that make us feel awkward and out of place are actually signals of a sharper, more complex mind at work. Let’s walk through what that looks like in real life. | ||
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