2020 has been a tough year. Starting with Australia’s devastating wildfires, followed up by the death of beloved basketball star Kobe Bryant and his young daughter Gigi, and then, of course, the COVID-19 pandemic. Let’s not forget about the murder hornets, the locusts in east Africa, the wildfires in Siberia, and the arctic circle reaching...

Morgan Freeman turned 83 this past June and he has been inspiring people throughout his career as an American actor. With his versatility, humor, emotional depth, and soothing voice, he has become one of the most respected performers in the industry. Back in the day, he broke the stereotype placed on black people for consistently...

With a love story beautiful enough to make a movie out of, former U.S. president Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter recently celebrated their 74th wedding anniversary, making them the longest-married presidential couple in history. This is their story of how they met, and most importantly, how they have kept the romance alive for...

Some classes won’t have an official graduation ceremony this year because of the current pandemic. The classes in safer areas must be thrilled to have the experience of officially graduating and celebrating their academic accomplishments. However, a graduation can become miserable if your family doesn’t bother to show up. That’s what happened to one teenager...

When it comes to fostering healthy relationships, drugs and alcohol are typically viewed very negatively- and rightly so. Addictions and substance abuse can destroy the bonds you have with friends, families, and spouses, and tear relationships apart. A more recent study, however, has been published that suggests that marijuana use may not deserve the bad...

Self-checkout machines have been appearing in seemingly every store across the country. Whether you’re at your local grocer, hardware store, or McDonald’s, you can choose between the traditional cashier model, or to do it yourself. The retail giant Walmart, however, may be moving toward a future where customers have the choice made for them. Starting...

In a joint operation organized by the Alaska Army National Guard and the state’s Department of National Resources, the famous “Magic Bus” has been airlifted out of stampede trail in the Denali Borough, Alaska [1]. Following its adaptation into a non-fiction book and the 2007 movie Into the Wild, the abandoned vehicle became an object...

Since the tourism industry has been all but completely sidelined during the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels around the world have been forced to close their doors. Some, however, have chosen to remain open in an act of true altruism and offered up their rooms to homeless people in their area for free. One of these hotels...

Here at the Hearty Soul, we love optical illusions, puzzles, and mind tricks. The more frustrating they are the better, and this most recent puzzle certainly fits the bill. How fast can you find the odd turtle in this puzzle? Full disclosure: it took me more than 15 minutes! (don’t tell anyone) How Fast Can...

With the coronavirus pandemic hitting the poorest communities the hardest, New York State farmers are stepping in to help out. Instead of dumping the produce, milk, and other products that they are unable to sell, they are donating them to those in need. New York Farmers Donate Product to Feed Families After having to painfully...

Fake news is a broad term that means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Some use it to describe content that is outright false, written in a misleading way, or as an attack on content they personally disagree with, regardless of accuracy. At The Hearty Soul, we define fake news...

Relentless poaching has remained one of the major concerns plaguing the conservation efforts of African wildlife [1]. Many formerly thriving species have faced declining populations in recent decades, and the situation just keeps getting worse. However, governments are becoming innovative with anti-poaching strategies, and it’s a gold star for the attack-dog initiative that has helped...