There’s no denying that the world is a pretty tough place to be at the moment. This is the first time many of us have dealt with this kind of circumstance, so it’s not surprising that the majority of people are feeling anxious or overwhelmed.

But among all the scary headlines and saddening news alerts, there are still small reasons to smile. 

After all, while it’s important to stay informed and keep up to date with the latest news, it’s also important to take care of your mental health: and that means giving yourself a bit of light relief every once in a while.

Thankfully, there are some good things happening across the world to take your mind off things for a while. So sit back, relax and get ready to smile: here’s 5 feel-good news stories to help you take your mind off things.

“Britain’s loneliest dog” has been adopted after spending 10 years in a rescue centre

A border collie who was given the title of “Britain’s loneliest dog” has been adopted after spending 10 years at Last Chance Animal Rescue in Edenbridge, Kent.

Bess the border collie arrived at the rescue centre when she was a puppy after being hit by a car, because her owners were unable to take care of her. 

Ten years after she arrived at the centre, staff launched an appeal to find her a new family for her old age – and were shocked when they received hundreds of applications from all over the world.

Although Bess deals with trust issues as a result of her accident, she is now settling into a new life with a family on the South Coast, where she’ll live out her final years surrounded by lots of love.  

A seven-year-old boy used his pocket money to donate toilet rolls to the elderly

Amid all the panic buying and stockpiling going on up and down the UK, one seven-year-old boy took matters into his own hands to ensure that his elderly neighbours got the supplies they need.

Jimmy-Dean Hudson from Westcliff, in Southend, bought “60 or 70” toilet rolls and handed them out to the people who live down his road.

He now plans to put together packages of supplies for the paramedics at Southend Hospital.

Couple who worried about coronavirus cancelling their wedding arranged a ceremony at St Pancras in 24 hours

Fearing their wedding on 11 April would not be able to go ahead, Claire and Matt Zinsner took matters into their own hands and arranged a new wedding at St Pancras station in London – all within a 24 hour period.

The couple had already cut down on the extensive guest list they’d initially invited to the ceremony, but ended up going ahead with just two of their close friends as witnesses. And instead of the day they’d planned far in advance, the pair ended up tying the knot in Searcys restaurant in St. Pancras.

“It was not the wedding either of us imagined; it turned out to be far better than that,” Claire told Metro.

This man missed going for a coffee with his wife – so she made their very own café in the garden

It’s only when you’re not able to do the everyday things – such as going for a coffee with someone you love – that you realise how much you take those things for granted.

But instead of spending their time social distancing lamenting the things they’ve lost, one couple have decided to take things into their own hands – by building a café at the end of their garden.

Taking to Twitter to share a picture of their parent’s makeshift “Caffé Ner’ome”, @jsphst00 said their mum had built the pretend coffee shop after their dad had said he missed going for coffee with her.

Is this not the cutest thing ever?

The postcard campaign that made kindness go viral

When Cornwall-based lecturer Becky Wass found herself feeling helpless in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, she decided to design a postcard to allow people who wanted to help others connect with those who needed it.

The design, which is available to download online, quickly went viral, with people in countries as far away as Australia getting involved. 

Speaking to Cornwall Live, Wass said: “I was talking to my husband John about how the news was quite hard-hitting and there wasn’t much we could actually do to make a positive difference.

“If just one person feels less lonely or isolated when faced with this pandemic, then I’ll feel better about it. Coronavirus is scary. Let’s make kindness go viral.”

Image: Getty