After focusing so much on the ones and zeroes, posts like this snap us back to all that really matters: other people.
In the past year, I have made dramatic changes in my life, both personal and business, for one reason: so that I can spend time with my mother who is suffering from severe dementia. We watch Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune every night together. I yell out all the answers and she laughs, not caring whether they're right or wrong.
Before she started slipping away last year, she told me 2 things:
"From the moment I first saw you, I knew I would love you unconditionally forever."
and
"I'm so proud of you."
Everything else from this point forward is gravy.
This is just one of a few really moving comments on Hacker News. Scratch a little, and one can find some really inspirational stories all around.