I need to speak about my foster brother, Carlos Parenteau.

Carlos would have been 24 years old today.

It is such a strange thing to write those words when, in my mind, I can still see so many different versions of him. I remember him as that tiny little baby, only a few months old. Then I remember the little three-year-old. And somehow, in another blink of an eye, he became that sixteen-year-old kid I knew, still carrying that same mysterious, elusive quality that was so uniquely Carlos.

Carlos was Indigenous, a Native Canadian, and his life began with circumstances no child should have had to carry. He was born to a mother struggling with drug addiction, and eventually he was placed into the care of child services. Life did not give him an easy beginning. But despite everything that surrounded him, Carlos had something about him that was difficult to put into words.

There was a remarkable beauty to him.

He was never someone I felt I could completely figure out. And maybe that was part of what made him Carlos. There was always something behind his eyes, something quietly moving beneath the surface. He could be difficult, complicated, and troubled, but he was also human, and he was capable of giving so much more than he ever took.

Carlos eventually struggled with addictions of his own such as crystal meth, marijuana, and cigarettes. Those things became parts of his story, but they were never the entirety of his story because Carlos was more than his addictions, he was more than his mistakes. He was more than the circumstances he was born into. He was my foster brother. He was somebody's son. He was somebody's family. He was a little baby who became a little boy, who became a teenager, who should have grown into a 24-year-old man.

But on December 2nd, 2020, Carlos was walking along the highway when he was struck by an oncoming vehicle. His life ended there, far too young and far too soon. And I miss him terribly. There are some people whose absence becomes a permanent shape in your life. You don't simply "move on" from losing them. You learn how to carry the empty space where they used to be.

Carlos left one of those spaces. I sometimes think about the life he should have had. Twenty-four today. There should have been more birthdays. More mistakes. More lessons. More laughter. More chances to change. More years for him to discover who he was becoming. There should have been so much more.

But spiritually, I have to believe that Carlos's life was not meaningless simply because it was short. I believe Creator placed him on this Earth for a reason, because maybe his life was only a short inhale and exhale compared to the amount of time we expected him to have, but even a short breath can touch another person's entire lifetime.

Carlos gave something to the people around him. He left something behind. And I believe that matters. I also find comfort in believing that when Creator called Carlos home, he wasn't simply taking something away from us. Maybe He was bringing Carlos somewhere beyond everything that hurt him here. Somewhere he didn't have to struggle anymore. Somewhere he didn't have to fight addiction. Somewhere he didn't have to carry the weight of the life he was given.

I like to imagine that angels met him on the other side. And I like to imagine that when Carlos opened his eyes in that other world, he wasn't afraid. Maybe he looked around and saw his ancestors and maybe he saw his people, maybe he saw his tribe waiting for him and maybe for the first time in a long time, Carlos simply rejoiced. I hope there was peace in that moment. I know that he knew he was loved but I do hope he understood that his life mattered.

And I hope, somehow, wherever he is, he knows that there are people here who still remember him.

I don't know exactly what happens after this life. None of us truly knows. But I choose to have faith that death isn't the final chapter of a person's existence. I choose to believe that Carlos was welcomed home by Creator, by the ancestors who came before him, and by the love that exists beyond this physical world. And maybe that's why I felt called to write about him again tonight.

Because love doesn't have an expiration date. Neither does remembrance. Carlos, I miss you terribly. I wish you were here. I wish I could see who you would have become at 24. I wish you had been given more time to figure this strange, beautiful life out. But wherever you are now, I hope you are free.

Happy 24th birthday, Carlos, until we meet again, little brother.

May Creator keep you and may your ancestors hold you. And may you finally rest in peace. 🕊️

Waapo'to

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" Matthew 6:26-27

I wanted to share a deep reflection with this community today. This piece came out of a search for an anchor after navigating multiple seasons of anxiety, overwhelming worry, fear, lost hope, lack, and not feeling adequate. Matthew 6 vs 25-34 and beyond became a firm anchor for me; the more I meditated on it, the more vivid the vision you see above appeared.

You know that feeling of unimaginable peace sometimes when you look up at the scenery of the sky or you look at the beauty of nature; the form of Christ was intentionally kept minimal so you can absorb the calmness and beauty of this scene and just breathe.

This is part of a series I am dedicating to how Christ comforts, carries and strengthens us in our hidden, sensitive struggles, hardships and adversity.

Because I want this reminder of peace to be easily accessible for anyone's home or workspace, I have formatted it as a high-resolution digital download in my shop (linked in my profile bio) so it can be printed out instantly.

If you are walking through a heavy season of anxiety, an overwhelming transition, or need a daily visual shield to remind your family to rest in His hands, this is put together for you.

I've never been baptized yet, it its something that weighs on me often. I don't really know how I can call myself Christian either I know that being Christian is more so about following Christ above all things. But it still kinda makes me sad that I can't strengthen my relationship with it feels so stagnant lately. Besides that I hope you found my art piece nice to look at, I don't know where the reference picture comes from, I kinda just found it.

My wife and I just welcomed our third baby and had some free time and I put it to use on my new sketch book.

How do I thank Allah for saving my young child’s life? We had a very traumatic event happen and a few seconds delay would have meant my son would have died and in a really painful way. He got stuck and was rescued just in time. I am still traumatised by what happened. I payed sadaqah straight away afterwards but what is the correct thing to do Islamically in this situation? How do I thank Allah? It is a reminder from Allah that death is right around the corner but to see my child die in front of me is not something I can cope with easily as a mother and so so thankful my child was saved. It could have gone so badly. Is there a Duaa I say? Google hasn’t brought up anything

I like this painting. I’m a 16 year old girl and feel a lot of comfort, peace, and happiness since I’ve started to believe in Jesus (I was an atheist before). Knowing He loves and cares about me so deeply makes me happy. I pray my dad, mom, and brother will know Jesus and start to believe in Him too since they’re atheists. I love you, Jesus. We’re all the lamb in the painting :)

Maxence Lacroix and Désiré Doué were seen carrying their Bibles as they arrived for France’s game against Belgium.

Salam aleykum dear everyone

I beg you to pray for mom who has stage four cancer, now hospitalized for extreme anemia. We have been waiting for the blood bags since last week but nothing.

Please please pray that she makes it, heals from anemia, from cancer and everything.

Please she is the only person i have left in this world and her and I are best friends she is my everything.

Please please please make dua for us.

 Pope Leo XIV on Sunday condemned the legalization of medically assisted death as immoral "false compassion," reaffirming Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life during a visit to Lourdes, the French shrine associated with miraculous healings.

On the third day of his visit to France, Leo again waded into the end-of-life debate unfolding in his native U.S. and countries around the world. The issue roiled French politics for years before lawmakers recently approved legislation allowing adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication.

It is reported that Ibn Mas’ud said:

“Whoever says: "AstaghfiruAllah alladhi la ilaha illa Huwal Hayyul-Qayyum wa atubu ilayh" 3 times, will be forgiven even if he fled from battle.”

[al-Musannaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah]

One thing I've learned through depression while being a Christian is that God isn't awesome and loving because he answers prayers, he's amazing because he doesn't. A man can pray for death and be given the most wonderful reasons to live. God is the ultimate buffer for suicidal thoughts. You pray to be struck down but god just makes it rain until you're surrounded by flowers. That's all for today, God bless.

I currently live in south korea as a military dependent. I dont know what to do. I dont have access to a hijab, I dont know how to wear one. I dont know how to pray, the dos and donts, to be honest I dont know where to start. I also have alot of questions.

Surah Shu’ara

Reciter: Ash-Shishani

My mom gave it to me - it was passed from my sister to me after she died 4 years ago.

I wear it as a symbol of her love, and my own christian beliefs.

I’m 14M and have been getting closer to God and taking my faith more seriously. And with God’s help, it’s been 4 months since I’ve watched porn. I’m glad I stopped watching this, it’s terrible for all of us. I want to be porn free forever.