Boater Saved; Marriage, Too: 5 Most Uplifting Stories

Rescues of all kinds factor large in the week's most uplifting stories:

• Author's Atlantic Odyssey Succeeds in One Big Way: South Carolina author Michael Hurley set sail for Ireland hoping to do some research for his next novel. Instead, he ran into bad weather, had to be rescued, and failed to reach his goal by 2,000 miles. The silver lining: The misadventure seems to have saved his marriage.
• Parachutist Saved in Mid-Air After Chute Fails: Spectators at a military air show in Britain watched an unplanned but dazzling display of skill after a man's parachute failed to open. Luckily for him, one of his fellow parachutists was both brave and strong.

• Florida Boys Save 2 Babies From Burning Home: Two Florida boys ages 10 and 11 played the hero this week when they spotted a mobile home on fire. They called 911 and, worried time would be short, rescued two babies from the home before firefighters arrived. One of the boys sounds like a Zen master.
• Graduation Morphs Into Big Surprise: Parents who thought they were going to have to sit through a boring graduation in a stuffy gym got anything but that at New Hampshire's Portsmouth High School. Two words: flash mob.
• Guy Sneaks Marriage Proposal Into Paper's Crossword: A British lawyer with a penchant for puzzles decided to pop the question to his girlfriend in what she calls an incredibly "geeky way": in the local paper's crossword. She had a little surprise for him, too, with her initial response.

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