You’ve read all the dismal statistics. As a country, we’re not well. Whether it’s heart disease or obesity or high blood pressure or depression or anxiety or cancer or dementia, we’re ill. And we’re not feeling any better, no matter how many pills we take. But don’t worry, this article is a hopeful one. Many doctors are skipping the traditional approach and prescribing nature instead, and so far, the data is looking good. Preliminary research suggests that going outside — looking at trees, listening to birds, and smelling flowers — activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which reduces stress, inflammation, and disease.

Ninth grader Jaelyn had straw-blond hair and turquoise eyes, believed in God, and was new to Santa Fe High School, located in a suburb of Houston. Long homeschooled, she had told her parents that God had “put it on her heart” to branch out and meet new people. Eleventh grader Sabika, who had black hair and mahogany eyes, believed in Allah, and also was new to Santa Fe. An exchange student from Pakistan, she had told her parents that she wanted be like Malala Yousafzai and have an impact on the world. This is the story of Jaelyn and Sabika’s friendship, the hope of young people, and the power of human connection across difference. You’ll cry at the end, no doubt, but please don’t let that deter you from reading this extraordinary article, so plainly and beautifully written.

There are two types of Americans — those who like to tidy up KonMari style, and those who prefer to adorn their living space with wall signs, spring candles, and pillows with tassels. No matter your leaning, you’ll love this week’s lead article, which explains how a hit TV show transformed a town in Texas — with mixed results (and major ramifications).

Sixty-five years after Brown v. Board of Education, our schools remain separate and unequal. Prof. Pedro Noguera recognizes that school desegregation is no longer a shared goal among educational leaders. Abandoning integration, however, would worsen socioeconomic and political divisions and would prevent efforts to build a prosperous, multiracial society. Most interesting to me is Prof. Noguera’s reliance on his life story in order to further his argument. He clearly benefited from integration. It’s captivating and poignant — but unfortunately, it seems a little generational now, a bit out of reach.

Highlighter favorite Ijeoma Oluo is back, this time sharing her painful experiences leading anti-racism workshops. Often, conversations on racial equity center white voices, white tears, and white fragility — thereby attacking the dignity of people of color. Ms. Oluo writes, “The white attendees decide for themselves what will be discussed, what they will hear, what they will learn. And it is their space. All spaces are.”

When Akhim Yuseff Cabey was little, growing up in the Bronx, all he wanted to do was ride the subway on his own. The subways were like space rockets, and riding to Queens to see his grandmother meant vanquishing aliens and saving the galaxy. But everything changed when Akhim turned 9 and vigilante Bernhard Goetz shot four Black boys on a subway car.

Youth violence is way down, especially in California. But that doesn’t mean juvenile halls are closing. Find out why in this week’s lead article, and ready yourself for outrage when you find out how much money counties are spending to incarcerate young people. 

This week’s lead article about the roots of white nationalism in the United States came to my attention the day before the horrific act of hate in Christchurch, New Zealand, which killed 50 Muslims as they met in mosques to worship and pray. My worry is that after Charleston, after Charlottesville, after Pittsburgh, we’ve become hardened, accustomed to the terrorism carried out by white men. 

The college admissions scandal riveted our attention this week, and several loyal readers reached out for my take. Besides the usual thoughts — yes, the system is rigged — I was reminded of the hard work of teachers and mentors who support young people who will be the first in their families to graduate from college. This is deeply important work. Certainly, it’s hard to compete with rich cheating parents and pricey college counselors. But still, young people persist, and they hold fast to their dreams of higher education, because of the good people who surround them.

“For more than 250 years, the nation’s news media, no matter how politically liberal, conservative, or radical, no matter what class they purported to represent, remained the press of its white population.”