The tragic Maui fires have produced all sorts of heartbreaking and gut-wrenching stories showing the utter destructive force of nature and the dark side of humanity.
However, it's true what they say: These stressful situations reveal people's true nature. Sometimes that's bad, but a lot of the time it showcases virtue.
Here's a story that will make your heart jump and tears well in your eyes.
Lani Williams and her mom, Sincerity Mirkovich, who goes by Noni, were trying to drive away from the fires, had nowhere to go, and thought their best bet was to jump the seawall into the ocean to escape the deadly flames. But Noni normally uses a walker and was unable to escape on her own, while her daughter didn't have the strength to aid her.
Enter toxic masculinity.
Benny Reinicke was also in the life-and-death situation, but he saw an old lady struggling to walk and escape the fire, so he went back, put her on his back, and carried her to safety.
"He's like, 'Trust me. Trust me. I promise. I got you,' and he did," Williams recalled. "He said, 'Auntie, put your weight on me. I got you.'"
When they were reunited thanks to Good Morning America, the women were beyond grateful.
"Auntie wouldn't have made it without you. I wouldn't have made it, bebe," Mirkovich said to Reinicke as they hugged, later adding, "I was scared."
Unlike the person who drove by the dying woman on the road to escape, Benny didn't have a bone of cowardice or fear in his body. He was a real man.
Reinicke said he had no hesitation when it came to helping save Mirkovich and Williams.
"There's no way morally I could just walk past that and just save myself, you know," he said. "It's just not hard. It's just the way my algorithm is in my head is [sic]. No way."
He didn't have to think twice. He couldn't have lived with himself if he had chosen to let them struggle and possibly die.
This is what masculinity looks like.
As she thanked the man who saved her life and her mother's, Williams told Reinicke that he is now part of their ohana, a Hawaiian term that means family.
"We love you," she said.
In a world of tragedy, this is the kind of stuff that gives you hope.
It just warms your stinkin' heart.
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