The Optimist: What a patient learned after revealing his embarrassing disease, the 81-year-old flight attendant and a very cool cat

Telling his story, he said, was a way to take control of his frightening disease and to talk openly about a malady that isn't "the kind of thing you bring up at a dinner party."

Stories that inspire   Hoping to find other patients, this man revealed a cancer often mistaken for 'jock itch' Telling his story, he said, was a way to take control of his frightening disease and to talk openly about a malady that isn't "the kind of thing you bring up at a dinner party." By Sandra G. Boodman •  Read more » 'I don't feel like I'm a threat anymore.' New HIV guidelines are changing lives. The medical establishment says those with undetectable viral loads cannot infect their sex partners. By Lenny Bernstein  •  Read more »   She gets a bouquet of birthday flowers every year from her dad — who died four years ago "My last love letter," says last card Bailey Sellers received from her father for her 21st birthday. By Kristine Phillips  •  Read more »   Did you join #GivingTuesday? Here's why people are giving more than ever. "No matter where you are in the world, we are all capable of connecting together. On Giving Tuesday we celebrate that giving in concert with millions of other people." By Allison Klein  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Meet the woman who's spent 60 years making the skies a little friendlier At 81, American Airlines flight attendant Bette Nash shows no signs of slowing down. By Lori Aratani  •  Read more »   Losing her memory, this 94-year-old became her son's muse and model — and an international sensation As Elia Luciani's mind faltered, her son's photos captured the process — and gained her fans from around the world By Tara Bahrampour  •  Read more »   Scientists just discovered the mother lode of pterosaur eggs, and they are over the moon The newfound fossil eggs and embryos suggest that pterosaurs guarded their young and nested in large colonies, the researchers say. By Jason Bittel  •  Read more »   Frida Kahlo empowered an actress to fight harassment. Now she voices Frida in 'Coco.' Natalia Cordova-Buckley says Kahlo made it okay to be a woman who is described as "intense, radical, crazy, dramatic." By Michael Cavna  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Lionel Richie can't slow down, and we're all the richer for it The Kennedy Center Honors recipient transcends race, genre — and time — with the power of his pop balladry, and he isn't done yet. By Geoff Edgers  •  Read more »   He's a 6-foot-6 corrections-officer-turned-singer. And D.C.'s toddlers love him. How Baba Ras D became one of Washington's most sought-after children's entertainers. By Perry Stein  •  Read more »   A woman raised more than $300,000 to help a homeless man who spent his last $20 to buy her gas Kate McClure has raised more than $300,000 as of Friday morning for a homeless man who helped her. By Kristine Phillips and Marwa Eltagouri  •  Read more »   Max, an aspiring library cat in St. Paul, Minn., spent time outdoors before his grounding. (Photo courtesy of Connie Lipton/Instagram) Meet Max, the cat who lost the library but won the Internet The charming tale of a Minnesota feline who sneaked into the stacks a few too many times. By Karin Brulliard •  Read more »         Share The Optimist:      Twitter     Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you signed up for The Optimist or because it is included in your subscription. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2016 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071

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