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 January 6, 2024

On New Year's Day, I awoke bright and early and full of excitement for a new beginning. Then, I promptly made a huge mistake: I forgot that, despite the unmarked planners and new dreams, I am the same person I was in 2023. All day, I tried to act like a different version of myself, one who didn't procrastinate (lol) and always made the right choice and had every little detail of their life together. It took me a while to realize that denying who you are and what challenges you face doesn't actually fix anything. Also, there is no best version of yourself! There's just you, now. So be kind to yourself. It's pretty hard to get anywhere if you haven't accepted where you are or appreciated the work it took to get this far already.

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Our favorites this week

Get going with some of our most popular good news stories of the week

Tetris king
A 13-year from Oklahoma has beat Tetris, the iconic old-school tessellation game. Now when we say beat, we mean literally. His score was so high, it pushed the game past its capacity and it crashed. Willis Gibson is believed to be the first human gamer to reach level 157 of the classic video game nearly 40 years after its release. Do you know how much effort, patience and brains it takes to literally beat Tetris at its own game?! “I’m going to pass out, I can’t feel my fingers,” Gibson said after his feat. He's no neophyte, either: The dextrous teen finished third in the 2023 Classic Tetris World Championship.

Read the full story here. 

On the horizon
Every year I write a story along the lines of "XX things to look forward to in 20XX." (You think we would have learned our lesson after 2020 — but no!) It's always a fun challenge to see how much positivity I can wrangle up and how long it will take to find a bunch of things happening in the world that aren't actively scary. This year's crop is pretty good! There's the basics: a leap year, a total solar eclipse, the Olympics and Paralympics, and of course, plenty of new movies and TV shows. But there are also historic anniversaries, medical breakthroughs in the fight against malaria and other diseases, and exciting exhibitions to celebrate! 

Read the full story here. 

He runs this 
Gary Leung was born with a rare retinal disease that, as an adult, robbed him of complete vision in both eyes. The loss sent Leung (above, second from right) into a deep depression, but he found freedom in long-distance running. Now in his 50s, Leung has completed the 62-mile Antarctic Ice Marathon, becoming the first blind person to do so; and the "Ultra Gobi," which is considered among the toughest foot races in the world. His latest feat? Running the length of Japan. The Japanese “Dark Run 2023” is a 2,300 km charity run broken up into 40 days. Leung and his interchanging guide runners ran an average of more than 50 km per day, starting south and working their way up. The run was aimed at raising money for young people with critical illnesses via the Roly Poly Inclusion Movement Association, a local non-profit. Leung says, when people praise him, he tells them who the real heroes are. "The most impressive are these children," Leung told CNN. "I wanted to show them that we all have our obstacles, but we must face them head-on and with bravery. When they’re faced with theirs – many of them suffer from worse difficulties – they can see it’s possible to overcome.”

Read the full story here. 

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Raise a glass to...

The Humphrey family — proud parents to a set of unique twins! Mom Eve gave birth to baby Ezra at 11:48 p.m. on December 31st at Virtua Voorhees Hospital in New Jersey. His twin Ezekiel didn't come along until 12:28 a.m. on January 1st, as everyone in the hospital was celebrating the new year. Twins born in different "years" are bound to happen from time to time, but the likelihood is infinitesimally small: Only about 3% of live births are twins, so, you know, the math gets even tricker from there.  “I’m definitely thinking they will make jokes about it,” their dad, Billy, told CNN. 

Read the full story here. 

Hear, hear!

"The past is written, but the future is left for us to write, and we have powerful tools ... openness, optimism, and the spirit of curiosity."

- Jean-Luc Picard in "Star Trek: Picard," Episode 8. 

Who knew?

May I introduce you to the word "biocrust?" It's as cool as it sounds. The scientists behind a new study say that parts of the Great Wall of China thought to be among the structure's weak points, are actually protected by a type of "living skin" made up of tiny, rootless plants and microorganisms. These biocrusts are seen all over the world and are generally thought to be bad news for man-made structures. However, parts of the Great Wall are made out of rammed earth, and these little ecosystems appear to actually protect them from the ravages of time by improving their stability and resistance to erosion. This discovery could lead to biocrusts being used to preserve other natural treasures. 

Read the full story here. 

Rec of the week

Brought to you by CNN Underscored

Shameless animal video

There's always time for cute animal videos. That time is now.

Why forage for food when you can just enjoy a Doordash delivery? That's what this bear did! His antics were caught on the family's doorbell camera. (Click here to view)

Made with love by CNN's 5 Things team. 

A newsletter for the good in life

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