The world is full of wonder and goodness. But you often have to consciously look for it when things get truly tough and it feels like everything’s chaotic. A reminder that there are still people out there willing to be kind, supportive, and empathetic can restore a bit of your faith in humanity.
Today, we’re featuring some of the newest and best posts from the sprawling ‘Be Amazed’ online community, which aims to share some of the most positive and—unsurprisingly—amazing things about life, from examples of altruism to impressive nature photos. Keep scrolling to lift your spirits! Oh, and don’t forget to upvote your favorite pics.
Bored Panda reached out to Glenn Geher, Ph.D., to learn about kindness from an evolutionary perspective, as well as how we can all find joy during particularly stressful times. Dr. Geher is a professor of psychology at the State University of New York at New Paltz and a published author. You'll find our interview with him as you read on.
#1 Humanity Goes A Long Way
Image credits: bspexet
"Kindness in humans is very interesting from an evolutionary perspective. At first glance, kindness doesn’t seem to make much evolutionary sense—nature doesn’t usually select for properties that help others at a cost to oneself. But in humans, things are a bit different," Dr. Geher explained to Bored Panda in an email.
"We evolved to live in stable social groups and at some point, cooperation became a core element of the human experience. With that, people who developed reputations as kind (as opposed to as selfish or greedy) actually did quite well," he said.
"Being seen as kind makes one more attractive as a friend, collaborator, and romantic partner. And this fact has shaped our psychology such that we tend to value kindness in others quite a bit."
#2 Such A Nice Guy!
Image credits: truxv2
#3 Chiune Sugihara Risked His Life In Saving The Jews From Nazis
Image credits: kyliechris19
Dr. Geher also shed some light on finding goodness and joy even when everything feels very tense and chaotic. "How people respond to stressful situations is a major factor in who someone is at their core. Stressful situations often bring out the worst in people, leading to anxiety, depression, and sometimes anger—things that characterize the worst of the human emotional experience," he told Bored Panda.
"Finding joy and goodness during stressful times is not always easy. But there are some kinds of experiences that famously help people to de-stress. Getting out into nature has been found to have positive effects when it comes to reducing stress. Sharing one’s emotional experiences with close others often is helpful as well," he said.
"Another one I’ll put out there pertains to creativity—it is hard to be stressed while painting a watercolor of a beautiful natural landscape, for instance."
#4 Give It Up For This Hero
Image credits: plzthrowitaway2222
#5 Wow, This Is Amazing
Image credits: bu1lainy
#6 Insulin
Image credits: Ted_Bundtcake
Dr. Geher noted that stress is "essentially the bane of our psychological existence."
"And let's face it: These days, there is plenty to be stressed about. Finding healthy ways that reduce stress for you is key to living a happy and fulfilling life. It may be exercise, nature, meditation, art, reading, crochet, etc. But once you find what works for you, make sure to institutionalize that into your daily life—doing so will be helpful when inevitable stressors come your way."
#7 We Need More Of This Kind Of People In This World
Image credits: karl3neil
#8 This Is So Sweet
Image credits: Shawon770
#9 That Only Happens To You Once
Image credits: 4reddityo
Human beings are hardwired in such a way that they focus more on the negative aspects of life more than the positives. This might be useful for survival, but it also means that you tend to have a slightly warped perspective of how the world can be.
Living through extremely distressing events like pandemics and armed conflicts and spending far too much time on social media, following every single negative development, can lead to empathy burnout, exhaustion, and chronic anxiety.
Of course, real life isn’t black and white. It’s nuanced. There’s joy and sorrow, triumph and horror, beauty and destruction, altruism and greed. And so, it’s important to recognize that no matter how horrible or wonderful life seems at the moment, the human experience is much deeper and more varied than it might appear. It would be a tad naive and short-sighted to believe that absolutely everything is amazing/horrible.
Though this means that there’s always potential conflict waiting behind every moment of joy, there are also silver linings to look for during stressful and tense times. It’s up to us to remember to focus on the positives when we’re drowning in stress.
#10 You Will Always Be A Legend
Image credits: Blazeduskglade21
#11 Despite Suffering Severe Burns As A Child, This Man Went On To Become A Firefighter
Image credits: cocovanilles
#12 This Woman Was So Nervous About Flying, So The Flight Attendant Explained Every Sound And Bump And Even Sat Here Holding Her Hand When It Still Got To Be Too Much For Her
Image credits: VastCoconut2609
People tend to pay more attention to bad things and overlook the positives due to evolution, Verywell Mind explains.
It’s likely that in early human history, paying attention to “bad, dangerous, and negative threats” was of utmost importance for survival. To put it simply, it’s theorized that people who were “more attuned to danger” and paid more attention to the bad things surrounding them were more likely to survive and, therefore, pass on their genes.
Negativity bias, also known as positive-negative asymmetry, is something that we’ve all felt in our lives. For example, it’s why you might feel much worse when you get criticized for messing up than when you get praised for doing a good job.
Or why an irritating comment from someone you know can ruin an otherwise perfectly fine day. In short, the average person is more biased toward negativity simply because of how our psychology and biology evolved to keep us safe(r).
#13 Beauty Of Wildlife: A Cub Looks At Her Mother With Admiration
Image credits: MobileAerie9918
#14
A homeless man's rabbit was thrown off a bridge by a passerby, and he instantly leaped into the river to rescue her. He received an award, animal food, and a job, while the passerby was charged with animal cruelty.
Image credits: Babe-Twinkle
#15 Wish More Professors Were Like This, This Is The Sweetest Thing
Image credits: kenyondavies38
Furthermore, human beings are more likely to remember traumatic experiences, react more strongly to negative stimuli, and respond more strongly to negative rather than equally positive events.
On top of that, people tend to learn more from negative outcomes and experiences than from positive ones. Negativity bias is also why the average person is more motivated to avoid losing something than to gain something.
#16 When A Vpn Company Does What Congress Won't
Image credits: ZenMasterZee
#17 Dad’s Sober Transformation
Image credits: PlusRequirement6
#18 It's Never Too Late To Learn New Things And Create Meaningful Memories
Image credits: enews
“It is the ‘bad things’ that grab our attention, stick to our memories, and, in many cases, influence the decisions that we make,” Verywell Mind explains.
For example, this is why people tend to see bad news as being more ‘truthful.’ It’s also why negative news stories get more attention.
#19 On Christmas, I Returned To A Place I Had Cleaned Up A Year Ago. Nature Has Reclaimed Back Its Land. This Is A Successful Cleanup I Will Cherish Forever
Image credits: pengweather
#20 I’m A Year Sober Today!
Image credits: HunterSexThompson
#21 Elephant Family Sleeping Together
Image credits: 8O8I
Meanwhile, Healthline explains that even though negativity appears to be our “default setting,” we can still health/negativity-bias" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">override it.
For example, you can increase your positivity by being more mindful of what is and isn't important in your life. You can also focus on more positivity by looking at what you’re grateful for and what you value.
#22 He Saved 22 Of His 23 Students
Image credits: Dimples-Deew
#23 Act Of Generosity
Image credits: Spirited_Most6626
#24 Dan Black, A Man Who Sacrificed His Chance To Walk Again For A Disabled Boy
Image credits: MujerFlower_
Originally, the ‘Be Amazed’ group was created back in late January of 2015. Now, more than a decade later, the project has grown to house a whopping 8.8 million members from all corners of the world.
At the time of writing, this group ranks among the top 1% of all subreddits by size. The team of moderators running the community describes it as a place to “find and share things which are amazing in a positive way.”
#25 Indian Actor Suniel Shetty Rescued 128 Trafficked Nepalese Women And Kept The Act Private. 🫡
Image credits: HoneyBlush_
#26 In 1952, A Group Of Farmers "Arrested" The Town's Sheriff While He Was Attempting To Evict A Widow From Her Farm At The Behest Of A Local Insurance Company
Image credits: plshelpme00
#27 This Is Truly Amazing
Image credits: toddjarry7x
The mods explain that the content that the members are encouraged to share ought to be positive as well. And, of course, amazing, too. To that end, everyone’s encouraged to avoid more serious topics like politics or war, unless the main focus is something else. Furthermore, everyone’s expected to be on their best behavior and treat all the other community members with kindness.
#28 Michael J. Fox Receives The Presidential Medal Of Freedom For His Advocacy In Parkinson’s Research - January 4th, 2025
Image credits: theRestisConfettii
#29 Northern Cardinal Aka Red Bird From Angry Birds Flying Directly Towards Camera
Image credits: 8O8I
#30
In 1980s, "Weird Al" Yankovic turned down a $5 million beer endorsement deal, which would be worth around $14.5 million today, because he felt it was unethical given his young, impressionable fanbase.
Image credits: blue_leaves987
Which of the images that we’ve featured today from ‘Be Amazed’ caught your attention, dear Pandas? Which ones inspired you the most? What do you do to keep your spirits up whenever things get particularly tough? What’s the last kind thing that you did for someone? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know what you think and what you’ve done in the comments below.
#31 Baby Elephant Tries To Hide Behind A Light Pole After Being Caught Committing Serious Crime Of Eating Sugarcane In A Field
Image credits: Dynastyisog
#32 After 15 Years Of Alcoholism & 50 Lbs Overweight. I Got Sober & Made Lifestyle Changes
Image credits: Uminx
#33 Moon Rising Behind A Tree
Image credits: Lotion-Lover
#34 Nikolai The Walrus Received A Fish Cake For His Birthday From A Zookeeper. This Was His Reaction
Image credits: Dynastyisog
#35 Dadarao Bilhore Has Been Filling Up Potholes Ever Since His Son Lost His Life Due To One
Image credits: sjardinsjy
#36 Snow Leopard In Ladakh ,india
Image credits: MarionberryRight8261
#37 Fingal's Cave Is A Geological Formation Located On The Uninhabited Island Of Staffa, In The Inner Hebrides Of Scotland
Image credits: ImPennypacker
#38 Indeed He Actually Make Her Young
Image credits: passmycom
#39 One Of The Two Remaining Northern White Rhinos In The World, Guarded 24 Hours A Day
Image credits: Lowdekeball
#40 This Man Spoke With Every Parent In Uvalde, Texas To Build Personalized Caskets For All 19 Children Who Were Killed. His Name Is Trey Ganem
Image credits: afamdent14
#41 John Cena Being A Great Guy
Image credits: Ted_Bundtcake
#42 A True Legend
Image credits: A_MASSIVE_PERVERT
#43 Mongolian Girl Has A Laugh With Her Camel
Image credits: Mrddx2
#44 This Is Jonathan He Was Born In 1832 & Is 192 Years Old
Image credits: Lotion-Lover
#45
Babe Ruth posing with fans 1925. He was a popular figure in the African American community because of his willingness to treat them as he would white fans, along with rumors of him being biracial.
Image credits: Ted_Bundtcake
#46 A Mom's Strength 💪
Image credits: Anon-Zer0-Quazar
#47 Same People 50 Years Apart
Image credits: Frosty-Feeling2316
#48
This man was a teacher for 40 years. In 1974, Dale Irby, a gym teacher in Dallas, realized he had worn the same outfit as the previous year on picture day, and decided to simply go with it, after Cathy – his wife – dared him to.
Image credits: Abigdogwithbread
#49 275 Years Apart, A 4,500-Year-Old Cypress Tree
Image credits: No_Penalty3029
#50 Strong Winds Create Unusual Shapes In The Frozen Sand Alongside Lake Michigan
Image credits: Rolleriroltsu
