Cancer is a word no one ever wants to hear from a medical professional, particularly not a parent. Childhood cancer comes with many challenges, but advances in medicine have made many cancers manageable. After successful treatment, cancer patients love to ring the bell as a sign they’re in remission. Joryal Hudson’s 8-year-old son, Royce, knew just what he wanted to do at the end of his leukemia treatment at a Houston children’s hospital. Just like a guest on The Jennifer Hudson Show, Royce danced his way down the hall in a true celebration. Royce’s Mom Said He Spent Months in Treatment Joryal told Storyful Royce received an acute lymphoblastic leukemia diagnosis in July 2025. Since then, the family has poured their heart into beating cancer. “He kicked cancer’s butt,” his proud mom said. Royce went viral on social media, and it’s not hard to see why. His dancing, cartwheels, and smile are positively contagious. People love to see a happy ending, and this story most definitely fits the bill. “God bless Royce with a long, healthy, and happy life!” Someone wrote. “Way to go, Royce,” another person added. Complete strangers loved seeing the story of a blessed family and their celebration go viral. “Best news I heard all day,” a follower wrote. Many people took a moment to pray for Royce for the blessings he’s received and continued good health in the future. “Thank you, Jesus. I am so proud of him and his family,” a comment reads. “God is so good,” another person shared. “Blessings to you, little one.” May sweet Royce continue to share his happiness with the world every day of his life. This story’s featured image can be found here.

Meghan Markle and her royal family headed to the mountains for a ski trip this week, and she couldn’t be more proud of how quickly her son, Prince Archie, mastered the craft. The mother of two captured footage of Archie, 6, and her husband, Harry, 41, heading down a steep mountainside during their trip. In it, Archie swooshes through the snow without hesitation while his dad checks and guides him through the process. The confident little prince doesn’t miss a beat, and he easily stays upright the whole ride down. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (@meghan) On April 2, Meghan posted the video on her Instagram page and gushed over Archie and Harry, saying, “My boys. Quick learner, Archie! So proud.” Meghan Markle Shares Adorable Photo of Princess Lilibet on Valentine’s Day While Meghan keeps her family life private, she occasionally offers these rare glimpses of Archie and her daughter, Lilibet, 4, on social media. On Valentine’s Day, Lilibet made an adorable appearance on Instagram while Meghan celebrated love in her life. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (@meghan) In the post, Meghan captured a sweet moment between Lilibet and Harry in front of a gorgeous sunset. Harry holds his daughter and lovingly watches her as she studies a bouquet of red balloons. She’s dressed like a tiny ballerina in a light pink leotard and matching pink tights. “These two + Archie = my forever Valentines,” Meghan captioned. Meghan, Harry, and their two children famously separated from the royals in March 2020. However, they still hold their duke and duchess titles. Archie and Lilibet also took prince and princess titles at birth. The four now live in Montecito, California. This story’s featured image is by Aaron Chown/PA Images via Getty Images.

Robbie Pierce, his husband, Neal Broverman are no strangers to bigotry. The men and their two young children were traveling on an Amtrak train in California in 2022 when they were harassed by a fellow passenger at a stop in San Jose; an incident that made headlines. “All of a sudden, there was a man standing there next to me,” Pierce told The Advocate. The man told their son, “Remember what I told you earlier. They stole you and they’re pedophiles,” Pierce recounts. The man also said that gay people are abominations. (Broverman is the editorial director for print media at Pride, The Advocate’s parent company.) The police were called and the man was thrown off the train, but the incident was a frightening reminder that gay families could be the target of bigots any time and anywhere, even in liberal Northern California. “It’s a new level of homophobia out there,” Pierce added. Seven months later, Pierce’s son was the victim of harassment, this time from a child at a park. A tire swing at an empty park. Photo credit: Dakota Lim/Unsplash “A random unattended 7-year-old at the park told me and my son that gay people are the devil,” he recounted in a viral X thread. “My son scoffed, but the boy said it was true because God said so.” Maybe it was the incident months prior. Maybe it was a lifetime of harassment and judgment. But whatever it was, in that moment, Pierce had had enough. He reacted to the boy’s hatred — which he probably learned at home — with his own lesson. “I told him parents made up God to make their Kids do what they want. His eyes got so big,” he wrote on X. A random unattended 7yo at the park told me and my son that gay people are the devil and are going to hell. My son scoffed, but the boy said it was true because God said so. I told him parents made up God to make their kids do what they want. His eyes got so big.— Robbie Pierce (@Robbiepierce) September 29, 2022 It’s worth wondering: Did God really ‘say so’? Biblical scholars are split on the Bible’s true message around homosexuality. It appears open to interpretation, and it’s clear that many people choose to interpret the words in a hateful and negative way, going so far as to show their children that it’s OK to approach and confront gay people over their identities. Addressing complex issues like religion and sexuality with a young child, who’s a stranger, is a tricky needle to thread, so Pierce admits he had some reservations about his response. But he stands by his decision. “I’m sorry but if you teach your kids to hate I’m going to teach them to disobey you,” he wrote on X. I'm sorry but if you teach your kids to hate I'm going to teach them to disobey you.— Robbie Pierce (@Robbiepierce) September 29, 2022 As someone who has been harassed by religious, homophobic people in the past, Pierce took the opportunity to help steer a young child away from hatred. At the age of 7, most children believe whatever their parents tell them. However, Pierce planted a seed in the child’s mind that may one day encourage him to challenge his indoctrination when he gets older. The kid will likely remember that interaction for many years to come, and may look back at it with shame one day. That shame could be the much-needed catalyst for change. “I was shocked at first and then…well…you may have planted a seed to grow a fine human out of the little homophobic bigot he was being trained up as. I can’t argue with that,” one user wrote on X. The vast majority of commenters on X agreed with Pierce’s response to the child’s comment. But what Robbie said wasn't exactly wrong? And if you're going to hell anyway, why not say it lol.— Sir David Lee ? (@davidleedesign) September 30, 2022 Good on you Robbie! I can’t stop laughing when I think of the conversation that kid is going to have at bedtime tonight.— Miggie (@Miggie07758273) September 30, 2022 pic.twitter.com/TmGwohZERg— TCastillo?? (@lombcast) September 29, 2022 However, some people thought Pierce’s response to the child was inappropriate. Bigoted words or not, it was still a child, and many people thought there may have been a more tactful way to teach the kid a lesson rather than invalidating his entire faith. Or perhaps Pierce could have tracked down the boy’s parents and given them an earful instead. maybe because the conversation was with a 7yo child? Are we going to victimize ourselves to THAT degree?This wasn't an admirable way to handle this situation.My personal beliefs don't have anything to do with it. I believe God is Love and I love all the gays. I love children.— PoplarTree (@PoplarTree20) September 30, 2022 That was quite wrong of you to do to a kid.You had a chance to enlighten a child. You could have told him that gay people are just like everyone else and should be respected. Instead you threw his mind into darkness and chaos. You made a bad situation worse.— The Ghost of CJ. (@CarlaJM) September 30, 2022 I’ll take: you are telling the truth and you took the time to own a seven year old kid to make yourself feel better. Very big of you. Or. You are making things up again. Either way, probably not something to hold as a moment of righteousness. Be better.— Jett Breffery (@emolawncare) September 30, 2022 One thing is clear: Something in our culture is definitely broken when we’re more intent on policing people’s responses to bigotry and hate versus addressing the root cause of these divides. The boy’s parents should be the one on trial in the court of public opinion for teaching their son that this kind of behavior is acceptable. No matter how one feels about Pierce’s reaction, what’s clear is that there is something very inappropriate about a 7-year-old child openly harassing LGBTQ families. The unfortunate problem is that this type of hyper-religious upbringing can cause lasting emotional and psychological trauma to a child. And it’s a common problem. A recent study in the growing field of religious trauma found that 1 in 3 Americans suffer from trauma related to religion at some point in their life. While we might be quick to dismiss the child’s behavior as innocent or simply as a symptom of growing up in a religious household, the more we learn about religious trauma, the more these children appear to be the victims of abuse. Hopefully Pierce’s words will help the boy rethink his relationship with his faith, and his parents, down the road. This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated. The post Gay dad has a forceful response to a 7-year-old who called gay people ‘the devil’ appeared first on Upworthy.

Despite society having made a lot of progress when it comes to same-sex relationships and alternative families, it’s not so commonplace that many queer parents are still presented with questions about their lifestyle from straight people. And while queer parents probably (rightfully) grow tired of answering certain questions day in and day out, having open conversation helps break through the lack of understanding which causes stigma and misconceptions in the first place. In a now-viral video shared to their Instagram, lesbian moms Allie and Sam Conway answer commonly asked questions they get as a queer married couple with twins. What’s it like to be lesbian parents? Of course, they started with the age-old question: “Who’s the real mom?” Though people by and large are able to differentiate biological connection from emotional connection (like with adoptive parents or step-parents to take on an active role in their step children’s lives), this is still a question that same-sex parents face regularly. And it’s a fairly harmful one at that, as it implicitly undermines the non-biological parent’s role in the family. So, to Sam’s point: “We’re both the mom.” View this post on Instagram Allie also told Upworthy that the usual response to this answer is “oh my gosh! That’s amazing!” Which makes her—and us—”smile so much.” Next up: “Who’s the dad?” To which they replied: “there isn’t a dad.” This is also a question fused with negative connotation, as it suggests a father figure is necessary for raising well-adjusted kids. But research shows that kids born to same-sex parents fare just as well as the children of straight couples, indicating that what’s really necessary for a child’s development is two healthy, loving parents. That’s it. Okay, this next one actually had an answer that surprised some folks: “Who carried them?” Though Sam wanted to be the one to get pregnant, Allie agreed to try after Sam’s “long fertility journey” of three IUI’s, three embryo transfers and multiple chemical pregnancies with one miscarriage. However, the couple used Sam’s eggs, and Sam did the breastfeeding. How the heck did that happen, you might wonder. Don’t worry, you’re not alone. So did lots of viewers. Sam underwent induced lactation, which tricks the body into thinking it’s pregnant and producing breast milk—it’s something often utilized by adoptive mothers. What is induced lactation? Induced lactation replicates the natural hormone process that happens when a woman gives birth. In this process, women are often given hormone supplements, such as estrogen or progesterone, to mimic the effects of pregnancy. This process may go on for months. About two months before the expected birth, the woman is then given a breast pump to stimulate lactation. View this post on Instagram Lastly, a fun one: “What do the kids call you?” “Mummy and other mummy,” Sam quipped. “We’re rotating all day,” Allie added. Without proper understanding, stigma persists. That’s how myths like “queer parents turn their children gay” or “children of two-mother families are more likely to be bullied” continue. And while it’s certainly not the responsibility of parents like Allie and Sam to educate folks on the realities of queer parenting, it’s great that they do offer genuine insight. And thankfully, they are usually met with positive reactions from people, Allie tells Upworthy. Which only further encourages them to answer more question and offer glimpses into “different types of families.” At the end of the day, families are made up of people who love and support one another. Everything else is just window dressing. Check out even more heartwarming family content from Allie and Sam on Instagram and YouTube. View this post on Instagram This article originally two years ago. It has been updated. The post Lesbian couple answers the most common questions they get from strangers about having a baby appeared first on Upworthy.

“Grease is the word, is the word that you heard/It’s got a groove, it’s got a meaningGrease is the time, is the place, is the motion/Grease is the way we are feeling” The title track to the 1978 film Grease, starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, brought three generations together and hit number 1 on the Billboard Charts. The song is based on a movie about teenagers in the ‘50s, sung by a legend from the ‘60s and written by one of the biggest hitmakers of the ‘70s. In other words, there was almost no one alive at the time who didn’t love Grease! (And did you know that Grease was a Broadway musical years before the film? The story and songs, in many instances, are wildly different between the two, however.) Grease was written by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees but sung by doo-wop legend Frankie Valli. Although the Bee Gees toured in the late ‘70s and made a comeback in the ’90s, they never played the song live until 1997 when it was part of their “One Night Only” concert and album featuring many of their biggest hits. What’s impressive about the song is that even though Valli does a great job singing it on the original recording, when you hear the Bee Gees sing it, it sounds exactly like something you would have heard them perform in the late ‘70s. During the performance, Barry Gibb points to Grease star Olivia Newton-John, who’s seen dancing with her daughter, Chloe Lattanzi in the audience (Newton-John passed away in August 2022). In the third verse, Valli’s vocal from the original is played so you can hear the difference.  The magic started when producer Robert Stigwood, fresh from the Travolta-starring ‘77 hit Saturday Night Fever, went into production on a film adaptation of the Broadway musical Grease. The film promised a killer soundtrack filled with new versions of the classic show tunes, but it needed a song for the film’s opening credits. So, Stigwood tapped Barry Gibb, lead singer of the Bee Gees, the band that had just launched into the stratosphere after being featured on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. Stigwood also happened to be the band’s manager and planned to feature them in a Beatles-based musical, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Legend has it that Barry wrote the song “Grease” in one day. Instead of sounding like a ’50s doo-wop or rockabilly track, it was a slick-sounding disco-adjacent number about a feeling of generational confusion. The song was given to Valli, who’d had a recent comeback with the songs “My Eyes Adored You” (1975) and the 1976 nostalgia-dazed Four Seasons doo-wop disco number “December 1963 (Oh, What A Night).” Valli had the option of recording the song or appearing as the Teen Angel who sings “Beauty School Drop-Out.” The “Walk Like a Man” singer opted to do the theme song and Frankie Avalon was given the Teen Angel role. “I just remember that it all happened in one afternoon,” Barry Gibb recalled. “I was babysitting and my wife was out. And Robert Stigwood called up and said, ‘I have two wonderful new songs by John Farrar called ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’ and ‘You’re the One that I Want.’ But we don’t have a song for the film’s title. Could you come up with a song called ‘Grease’?” I said, “How do you write a song called ‘Grease’? I don’t understand what direction I would take to do that.’ And Robert said, ‘Just Grease duh-duh-duh-duh-duh, Grease duh-duh-duh-duh-duh.’ So he wasn’t very helpful. But I understood that they really wanted something that was positive and sunny. It really all happened in that afternoon. I walked on the dock for a bit….” Indeed, the feature film version of the musical is known for its upbeat and optimistic music when compared to the slightly darker tones of the stage musical. Grease was a box-office smash and became the highest-grossing film of 1978. Unfortunately for Stigwood, his follow-up film, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, starring the Bee Gees, would be one of the biggest flops of the decade. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of “Grease” in 2018, Barry Gibb released the demo he originally recorded of the song accompanied by piano. Take a listen and chill out for a few minutes. This story originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated. The post 19 years after writing it, the Bee Gees finally performed ‘Grease’ for the first time ever appeared first on Upworthy.