What makes you happy? No, really — we want to know. Nice News is compiling answers from readers about the things that bring them joy. It could be as simple as enjoying your favorite treat for dessert, or as deep as spending time with your favorite human. Fill out this form to let us know, and note that your response could appear in a future article!
This Woman Is Reviving Forgotten Black American Recipes, One Video at a Time
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It all started with a video on vinegar pie. “I was like, ‘What is this?’” Texas content creator Sonja Norwood, who goes by Wick’d Confections online, told Today. When she learned about the dessert’s connection to her culture, she decided to re-create it in honor of Black History Month — and then launched a larger project to shine a light on overlooked Black American recipes. In her cooking videos, Norwood not only prepares bygone dishes like molasses pull candy and burnt sugar cake, but also narrates their origins and cultural contexts (sometimes even admitting that a recipe may have disappeared because of its taste). “The response that I got was crazy,” Norwood said. “I wasn’t expecting to do so many [videos]. I’m doing one every day now.” For Norwood, the project has become about much more than just revisiting recipes — it’s also about acknowledging the people who once made and ate these dishes. “The ‘why’ is very meaningful to me,” she said, adding: “It humanizes our ancestors, people we’ve never met before. Maybe we have some cognitive dissonance with that situation, but this gives them some humanity.”
Together With Quince
Bedroom Essentials for a Luxurious Spring Refresh
Spring is the perfect time to refresh your bedroom — and you don’t have to pay a premium to make it feel luxurious. Quince’s European Linen Duvet Cover Set delivers high-end comfort without the expensive price tag. Pre-washed for superior softness and a perfectly lived-in feel, it only gets better over time. Each duvet cover has a button closure and corner ties to keep your comforter in place all night. Add matching shams to complete the look, or keep it simple with the cover alone. Choose from dozens of colors and patterns to make it entirely your own and give your bedroom the refresh it deserves with Quince.
Sweet Letters From Pets Who’ve Crossed the Rainbow Bridge Are Comforting Grieving Owners
Olga Serba/iStock
Pet parents understand the heartbreak of saying goodbye to a beloved animal companion — for some, the grief can be as strong as it is for a human family member. Maria Solis knows that pain. But after her golden retriever-Samoyed mix, Kimba, crossed the rainbow bridge following nearly 16 years together, Solis found solace in a small object that memorialized her pup. “While she was physically gone, the connection we shared was very much alive,” Solis tells Nice News. “Years ago, I put her picture into a tiny photo charm that I still carry in my purse today. Every time I see it, I smile. That small token of remembrance was the spark for Heaven Sent Pets.” In November, Solis launched Heaven Sent Pets out of Southern California to provide comfort to fellow grieving owners. “I know how much our pets mean to us,” she says. “They are family. They are soul companions. They love unconditionally, so I set out to create one-of-a-kind pet sympathy gifts that speak directly to the heart — tangible reminders that love doesn’t die.” Her first product was a personalized letter, penned in the voice of the late pet and addressed to their family, and now she also creates photos and photo charms depicting the pets with angel wings. See the gifts.
Culture
The Story of How a WWI Soldier Sent His Fiancée a Poppy From the Trenches
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Just months before the end of World War I, an American infantry soldier named Harold Alfred Stivers pressed a symbolic surprise into a silk postcard for his fiancée: a poppy picked from Belgium’s Flanders Fields,the notorious Western Front battlegrounds. This week, more than a century later, the still-intact flower went under the hammer in England as part of a medals, militaria, and firearms auction. The poppy didn’t sell, but its story is still worth telling. Stivers, who was from New Jersey, trained as a bookkeeper before he was drafted into the army and set sail for France on May 19, 1918, at 29 years old. Records show he served as a cook infantryman for Company A of the 311th Infantry, part of the 78th Division, also known as the “Lightning Division.” Its soldiers experienced intense fighting in France, including the St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne offensives, which pushed back German forces. Poppies, however, flourished in the Western Front battlefields, famously inspiring Lt. Col. John McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields.” In 1921, the bright red flower was adopted by the Royal British Legion as the official symbol of remembrance. Read the rest of Stivers’ story.
In Other News
Earth’s largest coral colony was found on the Great Barrier Reef by citizen scientists — take a peek (read more)
The Rubin Observatory kicked off real-time night sky monitoring with 800,000 alerts about the cosmos (read more)
At age 98, the oldest competitive pool player in the world is showing her skills in a Las Vegas tournament (read more)
Meet Dobby: an adorable kitten with four ears who’s raising awareness about pets with disabilities (read more)
5,000-year-old bacteria discovered in cave icecould help researchers learn more about antibiotic resistance (read more)
Inspiring Story
Taking curiosity on the road
Author Scott Shigeoka believes curiosity is an antidote for divisiveness, and he recently set off on a six-month road trip across the U.S. to prove it. Called Curiosity Mobile, the multimedia storytelling project runs until July, concluding in Philadelphia in honor of the nation’s 250th birthday. “Our goal is to highlight people who are building a country where we all belong and flourish,” Shigeoka said. “At a time when so much feels divided, I want to elevate stories rooted in curiosity and connection rather than judgment and hate.” Watch a preview of his journey.
Photo of the Day
Marvin RECINOS—AFP/Getty Images
This intricate mural reimagining the Mona Lisa as a Latin American woman is the world’s largest to be made from an unlikely material: recycled plastic bottle caps. Venezuelan artist Óscar Olivares created the 42.6-foot-high piece in San Salvador, El Salvador, using over 100,000 caps — and as he told AFP, the most important aspect of it is “the impact it has on every viewer and every person who took part,” because it will give them “a totally different view of plastic waste.”
Daily Health Digital Explains the Real Reason Getting Up From Chairs Gets Harder (Not Age)
For decades, doctors blamed joint discomfort on aging and “wear and tear.” But Harvard research reveals something different: Joint drought, a slow drying-out of the lubricating fluid your joints need to function. Daily Health Digital explains why this matters and what 180,000-plus people discovered when they addressed it. The science is fascinating.
