upworthy

reddit made me smile

This is so sweet and so relatable.

For those of us that journaled back in our youth—have you ever cracked open one of those bad boys later in life? It’s both endearing and incredibly humbling at the same to see all your naivety immortalized in written form—from the trivial things that once upon a time felt like the most important thing EVER, to those first pains of realizing the world, and the people in it, are far from perfect.

This was the experience that one 20ish year old woman recently had when she apparently went back to her old childhood room after living overseas for a decade and finding a list of wishes made by her 14-year-old self.

Spoiler alert: it’s silly and touching all at once.

The list, which was shared on Reddit, is as follows:

“I wish I’ll get my period soon (hopefully not in public)
I wish I’ll grow boobs
I wish for world peace
I wish there's no racism
I wish there’s no such things as hobos, beggars, orphanage child or old folk’s home
I wish there’s no global warming
I wish everyone in this universe (yes, even you flies and mosquitoes) lives happily ever after
I wish friendships [weren’t] so complicated
I wish my parents [would] stop getting old
I wish I [could] watch my favorite TV show in peace WITHOUT being disturbed and insulted (you know who you are!)
I wish I will make lots of friends when I migrate to Australia
I wish I’ll never have to break up with my classmates and friends”

There’s just so much to laugh at, and relate to, here. First off, prioritizing boobs over world peace is hilariously on point. Like, this is exactly how a journal would be shown in a teen rom-com.

But then there’s wishing for more authentic friendships and to not have to witness a parent growing older, both of which are such universally felt pains. To this latter point, one person wrote, “as an older Mom that line caught me totally off guard and I'm wiping away tears. I bet your mom and dad wished for the same thing, OP. I know I do every day.”

Another added, "I'm in my mid 30s and my partner is early 40s. Our first daughter is less than 1. This is one of my fears, especially now that we're seeing our own parents age considerably and have serious health issues. Basically, this feeling doesn't really ever go away for anyone.”

It’s really the fact that the 14-year-old’s list contains both of these elements that made it so human. Or as one comment put it, “That breakneck swing from the touching poignancy of wishing friendships weren’t complicated and parents to stop growing old, to being able to watch tv without a sibling busting your balls.”

And if you’re wondering if any of these wishes did, in fact, come true, the OP actually let us know in the comments. Australia treated her well—she didn’t "struggle to make friends’ and “most people were super friendly.” She also noted that there’s still no world peace or boobs, but she’s actually “really grateful” for the latter. However she was not grateful for her period, which did eventually come, and she “got over" her annoyance towards mosquitoes. Lastly, she grew up to realize that maybe old folks' homes aren’t such a bad thing.

And that, ladies and gentleman and everyone in between, is growing up in a nutshell. Priorities shift, attitudes change, some fears dissolve and some fears stay the same. The residue of our identities slowly gets sloughed away, and what remains becomes who we are now. At least, for now. After all, the only constant is change.

National Lottery Good Causes/Wikipedia, National Lottery Good Causes/Wikipedia

Fred Sirieix (left) Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix (right)

As a parent, it's often hard to know how to help your kids deal with profound disappointment, especially after watching them work so hard for it, and knowing that on perhaps another day, the goal very well could have been achieved.

Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix, a diver competing in the Olympics for Team GB, fell short of her goal this week. Only a week prior, the 19-year-old won a bronze medal in the synchronized 10-meter platform. And her outstanding performance on Monday placed her third in the semi-final.

But in the individual final, she came in 6th. Even if she had somehow improved her performance, it would have been pretty impossible to beat Quan Hongchan, who seemingly defied physics to come up with a new “no splash” technique that won her the gold.

Regardless, coming so close to realizing a dream and not getting it is so very painful, and Andrea was understandably let down. But her father Fred Sirieix, a TV personality who just so happened to also be working as an Olympics commentator for the BBC, was there to provide some sound words of encouragement.


In a clip record by the BBC, we hear Fred begin, “It’s sport. Some days you win and some days you lose. And yesterday you did brilliant.”

He then shows his daughter the text messages that had been pouring in sharing what an inspiration she has been to others.

“Kevin, you know, he said to me, ‘Let Andrea know the whole country is proud of her. My daughter wants to try diving because of her. She’s a superhero,’ Look at all the texts coming in.”

And then came the best part, when Andrea nodded and said “it just wasn’t meant to be” and Fred replied, “it wasn’t meant to be today.”


@children_needfathers Such a beautiful dad and daughter moment from @fred_sirieix and @andreassirieix04 ❤️ #BBCOlympics #Olympics #Paris2024 #Diving #AndreaSpendoliniSirieix #FredSirieix ♬ Very Sad - Enchan


The video has been making it’s rounds on social media, gathering a ton of positive responses from people.

Here are a few comments from Reddit:

“The combination of realism (it wasn't meant to be), pride at what was accomplished (you are an inspiration) and hope for what might be (not today maybe next time) is so comforting and relaxing.”

“Best positive fatherly reply ever.”

“Such a moving scene! A father’s embrace and encouragement can make all the difference in moments of disappointment.”

“As a dad, being there for my daughter like this is such motivation.”

“Love how he also adds in ‘today’ when she says ‘was not meant to be.’ There's always tomorrow.”

Andrea has previously been open about mental health struggles, especially three years ago after competing in the Tokyo Olympics. During that period, she “didn’t even want to be alive,” she told the BBC. But she credits the support of her family for getting through to the other side.

“In that time, I stuck very close to my family and that’s why it means everything for them to be here because they have seen me at my lowest and now they have seen me compete at the Olympic Games,” she said. “That’s all I really wanted.”

And in the aforementioned clip, it’s clear that her father’s support continues to have an effect on her outlook as she says “it doesn't take away from the year.”

Fred continued to be a great parenting example as told the BBC “She has had a super year. She is diving well. She made a couple of errors and she got overtaken and she couldn’t claw back the deficit. She has come here, she has come to Paris in the Olympics and she has got a medal…So I am very happy for her.”

Parents—both with Olympian and non-Olympian children alike—don’t need to ignore their child’s shortcomings. But at the same time, it’s important for them to remind them that these imperfections are but small parts of the bigger picture. This is a prefect example of how to do that.

Can't wait to use these at the club.

There’s just something so uplifting about a person boldly, unabashedly letting their geek flag fly.

When someone dares to be “uncool” and is just enjoying being themselves—quirks and all—it reminds us all that cool is a little overrated anyway. Suddenly throwing on that Lisa Frank t-shirt from middle school that still fits doesn’t seem as embarrassing as we thought it would be, and creating a dumb parody music video just to get a few laughs sounds like a totally respectable way to fill a Saturday afternoon. We’re better able to fearlessly express parts of ourselves because someone else showed us just how fun that kind of wild abandon can be, and it’s a beautiful thing.

Cue: The Math Dance.


In a video posted to the Reddit Made Me Smile community, one teen girl asks another, “What is your go-to dance move?”

Without missing a beat, the girl replies, “You guys wanna see my math dance moves?” She’s already holding back giggles in anticipation of showing them off.

“Did you say math?” the other girl asks.

Oh, yes, yes she did. "Math operations and functions," to be specific. You know…addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, etc.

Division, many a commenter noted, went particularly hard.

Watch:

It’s mathematical
by u/IkilledRichieWhelan in MadeMeSmile

Wasn’t that so cheesy it actually circled around and became cool again? Seriously, wish this dance were as mainstream as the electric slide.

The “Math Dance” also brought out the most amazing wordplay from the comments section on Reddit. Check them out:

“I think she's confusing the division dance with the percentage pivot turn.”

“It was mathemagical!”

“When you’re dancing with a girl in the club and she hits you with that y=x1/3.”

“All of the moves were so add-mirable and I love it. Didn't expect it at all.”

“Nerds never die, they multiply.

Lastly, read this one to the tune of the Cha Cha Slide.

“Divide two times now y'all. Co sine! Co sine! Subtract real smooth. Let's show ya work.”

All in all, this girl gave everyone a dose of joy, simply by being her adorkable self. Who run the world? Nerds!

Also, she’s now everybody’s favorite math teacher.

The Coley fam gets tested on TikTok.

You know what they say: The family that TikToks together, stays together.

The Coley family is certainly no exception. With their unbridled and contagious enthusiasm, it’s no wonder that they’ve amassed a following of nearly 2 million people.

One of their more recent posts has more than 7 million views, as the Coleys get tested on “who knows dad best?”

There’s no question this family enjoys one another. And it’s heartwarming to watch.


The first round started off easy: What is Dad’s favorite candy?

The answer was unanimous, and correct. Reeses (pronounced “REE-sees,” which sparked its own sidebar in the comments).

“That entire family pronounced that Candy wrong lol” one person wrote. Hey, at least they were united.

@keecoley 😂👀 #foryou #fyp #familyfun #whoknows #competition ♬ original sound - Kee & The Coley fam

With each correct answer, the kids get a rigorous dap of approval from dad. All except Mom, who refused anything but a kiss and playfully slapped the dap away.

The next round got a bit more tricky: What is Dad’s favorite restaurant?

Though most got it right (Cooper’s Hawk), sadly, not everyone succeeded. Golden Corral is not, in fact, Dad’s favorite dining spot, despite one son’s guess.

Mom (who got it right, again) warned “if you try to dap me one more time,” but Dad effortlessly slid into a hug instead.

Third round carried romantic history: In what grade did Dad meet Mom?

This one was going really well until the last son guessed 8th grade. The correct answer was 10th grade. Hooray for these high school sweethearts!

Then, there was the tiebreaker round, where each family member had to guess Dad’s longest long jump distance in high school (23.1 feet).

Though they all get points for eagerness, the winner was the daughter in the purple hoodie. Which is made pretty clear by her passionate screams of victory.

The Coleys have been winning over hearts with their content, leaving some to ask directly if they could join the family.

“Do you guys have room at the table for one more,” one person wrote

Another commented, “I’m not gonna ask again to be adopted…what’s taking so long?”

I think after watching this video, we’d all like to be adopted by the Coleys.

If you’re looking for more wholesome content from the Coleys, you can check out their TikTok channel here. They even did a similar quiz for Mom.

@keecoley Had to see who knew mom the best 👀😂 #foryou #fyp #familyfun #competition #whoknows ♬ original sound - Kee & The Coley fam

Sadly, the family was nowhere near as savvy this time. Equally hilarious though!