Happy news, on the other hand

Just in case you, like I, don't watch television and avoid social media, here's a story already seen by over 100 million people, but not by me. And I really needed something like this, even if it brought tears. Hooray for the Internet.

A video of a segment on "America's Got Talent" has been viewed over 66 million times [and counting] on Facebook and over 3 million times on YouTube in less than 24 hours since being posted on Tuesday evening. This is no ordinary video, obviously. Something truly extraordinary happens.

Make sure you have tissues ready.

The video features 29-year-old Mandy Harvey, a woman who lost all her hearing at the age of 18 due to a medical condition. As she explains, she was singing by the age of four and sang all her life — until she lost her hearing. She appears on stage with her sign language interpreter and explains that she sings by feeling the vibrations in the floor to keep the beat and by trusting her pitch.

Mandy sings a song she composed that talks about how she gave up, but then after several years decided to try again and pursue her dreams. If this doesn't inspire you, you might need to check for a pulse.

One of the best parts of this video is watching Mandy's dad watch her from offstage. Watch the moment that melts Simon Cowell's heart.

(Update, June 9, 6:30 AM): I was thinking just now that those must be judges at the table, so presumably there were other contestants when this young woman appeared. Imagine, you finally get your big chance on national TV, and you're paired against Ms. Amanda Harvey, who not only can sing beautifully, but has a sunny, upbeat personality and an incredibly inspirational personal story: You don't stand a chance, because if the judges didn't give her the prize — and clearly they wanted to — they'd have been lynched by the audience, who absolutely loved her (as did I). I'd be tempted to say that life's unfair, but life was unfair to Harvey herself, so suck it up, you poor bastid.

Still ...