#trinity teen solutions

[childrensrightsrehumanrights]

Tw child abuse

[herrscherofmagic]

finally caught up with the current HI3rd event, the Luna one! so time to share lots of random thoughts, hehe

It felt a bit surreal first seeing this conclusion to the Captainverse story, but now that I've gone through the whole thing I can say that I really liked the way Mihoyo handled it. Of course there are details that I'm still iffy on, like the whole Luna-aged-over-10,000-years thing is pretty clearly fan service-y; but even that doesn't bother me too much.

More than anything else, I appreciate how the Captainverse gave us a happy ending for the "holy trinity of depression" in HI3rd's main story: Kallen, Himeko, and Sirin. All three of them suffered so much in the main story, after all.

Even if these bubble-world versions of them aren't the originals, it's still heartwarming to see them looking forward to a brighter future, instead of being faced with certain doom in the face of powers beyond their understanding.

Himeko especially hits me in the feels, not just because of Final Lesson but all the way back in her late teens when she lost her father, as we saw in the Alien Space manga. It was a completely life-changing event for her, and if she hadn't lost her father there then Himeko could've followed her passions and lived a very different life.

The Captainverse Himeko isn't the same Himeko, but it feels like she's carrying on that same dream. It's almost like a different version of the Kiana-MemoryHimeko reunion in the Flamescion arc; but instead of a mature Himeko seeing off her student, it's the young Himeko starting a new adventure and following her dreams...

I also loved how well Mihoyo wrote the Captainverse cast. The way everyone interacts w/ each other felt so natural imo, it was really nice seeing all the different connections that started popping up. The rivalry between Luna and Kongming, the budding friendship between Bronie and Sirin, Himeko & Captain, and so on. There was very little technobabble or convoluted plot stuff (at least in my opinion) for most of the Captainverse events. All these fun character interactions were the center of attention, and it was an absolute blast! ^.^

There's two final thoughts I have about the Captainverse, and I know that Mihoyo probably isn't going to explore either of these possibilities, but I'll choose to dream that it'll happen someday >.<

First: The Main Story showed us that HoFi Kiana has the power to stabilize an entire bubble world. Even if she didn't, the Earth civilization is still pretty advanced thanks to the Divine Keys (1st Key and 2nd Key especially). So if the Captainverse Hyperion crew ever encountered Earth and met our Main Story cast... wouldn't that be the perfect solution to the bubble world dilemma? After all, much of the pain these characters have gone through was the result of the inevitable decay and collapse of unstable bubble worlds (which is nearly all of them).

I doubt it'd ever happen in the story, but I'd still love to see how the Hyperion crew would react to meeting their "real" selves, and to discovering that there's a way to save all these worlds. Of course there's probably countless bubble worlds so not ALL can be saved, but every world saved is still a massive achievement!

And I'm curious how they'd react to the existence of the Imaginary Tree. As far as I can tell, none of their bubble worlds seem to have any idea that the Imaginary Tree exists. They likely have no clue that there is a Cocoon of Finality, or that Earth is a thing and that it's part of a solar system, and so on. So learning about all these things would probably be a huge revelation for them. Kinda like a Plato's cave allegory. Which is quite fitting tbh, since bubble worlds are basically shadows of the "real worlds".

Second: I genuinely believe the Captainverse cast would fit perfectly in the setting of Honkai: Star Rail.

One obvious point is that the Hyperion crew is a clear candidate for a Path of Trailblaze faction. Instead of traveling across the Imaginary Tree with the Astral Express, they travel through the Sea of Quanta on their own Hyperion. They don't connect "real worlds" and I don't think it's accurate to say they connect bubble worlds, but they're still able to travel between them and transfer people and ideas. Surely with enough time they could come up with a way to truly bridge the gap between different bubble worlds, and then they'd be a near perfect thematic parallel of the Astral Express- just in the Sea of Quanta instead of on the Imaginary Tree.

Then there's also the fact that most of the Hyperion crew members have a strong ambition to travel, explore, adventure, and so on. Bronie and Himeko want to see what lies in the countless worlds of the Starry Sea, Captain wants to continue traveling between worlds and helping people, Sirin wants to grow stronger and learn how to better protect her own world, and so on. Almost any of these characters could feasibly join the Astral Express if given the opportunity (and if they weren't already part of Hyperion).

I also feel like their character dynamics would fit HSR's balance of sillyness and seriousness. The Captainverse crew can all get serious when they need to, but they're also capable of plenty of fun shenanigans. I could imagine them getting into trouble and engaging in a bit of tomfoolery just as easily as I could imagine them facing down the Antimatter Legion and fighting to save a world from its impending doom.

Again, there's basically 0% chance of this happening... but I'd still love to see it someday. The Captainverse crew might be a bunch of familiar faces but they all have their own unique origins, ambitions, skills, personality, and so on. They're not just mere copies of the "real" versions of themselves, but they've become their own characters through this story.

It does hurt a bit, knowing that this cast is ultimately going to be relegated to side stories and temporary events. I believe that if you changed some of the terminology and character designs a bit, then the story of the Captainverse could probably stand entirely on its own as an independent piece of media. The concept of traveling between unstable and decaying worlds in the Sea of Quanta, the use of consciousness mapping and how it affects both the world & the user, the Ether Anchors; all these ideas are well-developed and they're conveyed in a story with a lovable cast. There's so much potential here, and this story doesn't really need the rest of the HI3rd story to give context to these characters and the setting they're in.

If this is truly the end of the Captainverse, I'd still be satisfied. If we still get Captainverse content but it's just minor stuff, I'd still be satisfied. I think this event did a great job of answering questions, tying up loose ends, and leaving things open for the future.

But despite that, I still wish we could see more of this cast. I want to see Bronie reuniting with Ciora and Theresa, Sirin growing stronger with time as she explores the Sea, Himeko's excitement in traveling across worlds, Kallen & Luna bonding and growing past their troubled past.

at this point I probably care about the Captainverse as much if not more than the Main Story. I'm excited about Mars, don't get me wrong... but the Sea!!! the bubble worlds!! Himeko & Sirin & Kallen & everyone else!! >~<

[stuckybingo]

Stucky Bingo Round-Up #19 (February 12th - 18th)

Don’t forget to fill out the submission form to be a part of the round-ups and to get your bingo badges!

Tell Me I’m Your National Anthem by cable-knit-sweater Square filled: Adopted square - Kink: Sexting Ao3 rating: Teen Warnings: No archive warnings apply, watermelon Major tags: Shrunkyclunks, idiots in love, miscommunication, secret relationship Summary: Three different moments in the early stages of Steve & Bucky’s relationship, in which they’re both idiots Format: Part of a multichapter fic

Court Mandated Therapy by singthebeginningofmoana Square filled: G5 - Bucky's Trigger Words Ao3 rating: General audiences Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Talk of Mind Control Major tags: Angst, Bucky Barnes Recovering, Flashbacks, Non-Linear Narrative Summary: An exploration of Bucky's history with therapy and how that affects him. Format: Short oneshot (300 - 1000 words)

I Knew Him by singthebeginningofmoana Square filled: O2 - “But I knew him.” Ao3 rating: General audiences Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Canon Memory Erasing and Gaslighting Major tags: Angst, Amnesia, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, Confused Bucky Barnes Summary: Bucky knows that Steve is someone important. He just can't remember. (Set during Captain America: The Winter Soldier.) Format: Short oneshot (300 - 1000 words)

A Little Love, That's All by purpleicedteas Square filled: B5 - Skinny Steve Ao3 rating: Explicit Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Emotional Insecurity, Loneliness, Inner Homophobia Major tags: No Archive Warnings Apply, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Touch-Starved, Lonely Steve Rogers, Pining, 1940s, Bucky Wasn't Drafted Summary: Steve Rogers doesn’t know how to flirt. Steve Rogers is in love with his best friend. Steve Rogers' best friend goes out to a club every Saturday to pick up a lady. The solution? Go with him. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

1930s Valentine's Day Blues by endlesstwanted Square filled: I5 - “Jerk” Ao3 rating: General audiences Warnings: No archive warnings apply Major tags: 1930s, Light Angst, Pining, Love Confessionss Summary: Steve had never enjoyed Valentine's Day, and he can’t help but hope for this year to be different. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

what I learned from all those years, what I earned from all those tears by Winnie Square filled: G2 - Kink: Ocean Sex Ao3 rating: Mature Warnings: No archive warnings apply, mentions of past depression and depressive mindsets Major tags: kink: ocean sex, public handjobs, domestic fluff, established relationship Summary: Steve and Bucky go on a nice summer holiday and realize some important things, then celebrate. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

My Fair Bucky by Trinity Day Square filled: O5 - Crack Treated Seriously Ao3 rating: Teen Warnings: No archive warnings apply Major tags: Post CA:TWS, Captain America Smithsonian Exhibit Summary: Steve can't believe his luck when he overhears some tourists talk about the man they saw at the Captain America exhibit, the one that looked so much like Bucky Barnes. But when he rushes to the Smithsonian, the only thing he accomplishes is to chase Bucky away. If returning to the museum the next day is sheer folly, what Steve does when Bucky shows up again is beyond insane. (In Steve's defence, he doesn't actually expect to get away with switching places with his mannequin.) Format: Long oneshot (over 5000 words)

Ink'd Red by Smutconnoisseur Square filled: I2 - AU : Tattoo Shop Ao3 rating: Explicit Warnings: No archive warnings apply Major tags: TattooArtist!Steve, GentlemansClubWorker!Bucky, Oral Sex, Rimming, Workplace Sex Summary: Steve has an unforgettable encounter on Valentine's Day when he stays late at the shop. It forever alters his perspective on cherries. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

That's Not True by singthebeginningofmoana Square filled: G4 - Misunderstandings Ao3 rating: Teen Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Suicide Attempt Major tags: Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Angst Summary: Steve tells Sam the truth about why he crashed into the ice all those years ago. Format: Short oneshot (300 - 1000 words)

Get Your Shit Together So I Can Love You by Winnie Square filled: G1 - reunion Ao3 rating: Teen Warnings: No archive warnings apply, closeted character,closeted queerness discussion Major tags: angst with a happy ending, domestic dispute, established relationship,everybody needs and gets a hug Summary: Steve and Bucky have a fight and Bucky has a good long think about being in the closet with Steve and all of Steve's baggage. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

Unforeseen Beatitude by Smutconnoisseur Square filled: O2 - Touching Foreheads Ao3 rating: Explicit Warnings: No archive warnings apply Major tags: Non-Traditional A/B/O, Unplanned Pregnancy, Mpreg, Explicit Sexual Content, Mentions Of Possible Sterilization Summary: He looks down at the digital calendar in front of him, falling to his knees, and for the first time since Steve dropped the shield for him, Bucky cries. He doesn`t know how long he stays there, on the floor of his hut, curled into himself, face wet with tears and voice hoarse from asking the impossible over and over. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

Don't Let Him Talk by singthebeginningofmoana Square filled: G3 - Under A Spell Ao3 rating: General audiences Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Talk of Mind Control and Winter Soldier Trauma Major tags: Angst, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes Recovering, Unreliable Narrator, Misunderstandings Summary: Bucky feels comforted when Steve speaks to him. Due to his trauma, he mistakes this for Steve mind controlling him. Format: Short oneshot (300 - 1000 words)

Legendary Outlaw by Smutconnoisseur Square filled: N4 - Kink : Blindfolds Ao3 rating: Explicit Warnings: No archive warnings apply, Consensual non-consent, extreme Dubious consent, Kinks, Rough Sex, Sexual Roleplay Major tags: Non- traditional ABO dynamics, Bondage, Blindfolds, Dacryphilia, Prostate Milking Summary: Steve is an outlaw, a good one, but an outlaw all the same. When he catches wind of a mating run in the area for Alphas to find a match, he risks his livelihood to participate. What he doesn’t know is that across the valley, one crooked sheriff is counting on his attendance. Format: Medium oneshot (1000 - 5000 words)

[cloudywilmon]

cloudymiIk fanfic masterpost

Guide

Status

☑ complete ❒ in progress ☒ hiatus

Rating

Ⓔ Explicit Ⓣ Teen Ⓝ Not Rated

Young Royals

stand alone oneshots and multichaptered

get it off your chest, get it off my desk Ⓔ ☑

wc: 6,877

Vincent hasn’t called him to stand since the time with Felice, although there have been multiple nights where Simon has slept over. He supposes that while one can assume, it’s not actually evident that he and Simon had sex during those times (even though they definitely have). There was no mistaking the way they’d left early the night before, however. No mistaking the darkened bruise on Wille’s neck. They’ve already received some smirks from the boys around them, cheekily asking them if they’d had a goodnight.

i find myself running home to your sweet nothings Ⓣ ☑

wc: 2,196

He’d always known Simon was beautiful, to him, it was a universal constant. But now, getting to see him in person, looking up at Wille so openly - eagerly - he was radiant. - Following Wille's speech, he and Simon finally get some time alone together. Post S2 E6.

bloom where you are planted Ⓣ ☑

wc: 12,915

Wille is a plant boy, Simon has a black thumb. They both run semi-popular Instas.

make the yuletide gay Ⓣ☑

chapters 5/5

wc: 34,947

Wille doesn’t have anywhere to go for the holidays, Sara wants her family to stop asking if she has a boyfriend. Fake dating over Christmas seems like the perfect solution - at least until Wille meets Sara’s brother.

series

darling, you're the one I want

1/2 - i hate accidents except when we went from friends to this Ⓔ ☑

chapters 8/8

wc: 59,633

Simon is Wilhelm's best friend, so when he confesses that he's insecure about his lack of experience Wille offers to help him. After all, it's what any good friend would do, isn't it?

2/2 - i want you (bless my soul) Ⓔ ☑

wc: 15,539

Wille and Simon decide to take another step in their relationship - but first, Wille needs to do some research (off the school wifi this time).

 

In your heart I see the start of every night and every day

1/2 - You're Simply the Best Ⓔ ☑

chapters 27/27

wc: 123,730

“So if you’re not staying there, and you’re not coming here…” Erik began, pausing for Willie to answer and giving another laugh when Wille didn’t fill in the blanks. “Pray tell Wilhelm, where exactly is my little brother spending the weekend? I thought your crush went to Hillerska?” or Erik Lives

2/2 - i'm stuck on your heart Ⓝ ☑

wc: 8,788

moments from 'you're simply the best' from other perspectives

✨ Prince Simon Cinematic Universe ✨

Tell me what you need (You look so free) Ⓔ ❒

chapters 2/10

wc: 39,102

He let himself imagine for a moment that they could be friends - maybe in another life, another universe. The whole point of his attendance at the conference, however, was to portray the image that his mother wanted him to. He brushed the fantasies aside, it was a big enough event, he should be able to get away with avoiding Prince Simon. He had to. - Fresh off his breakup with Nils and the release of the tape, Wille is determined to be the model prince, to play the role that's expected of him. Simon might throw a wrench in that plan.

unholy trinity Ⓣ - with @prince-simon

chapters 4/4

wc: 6,443

Prince Simon consults his best friends for advice on his feelings for the little prince of Sweden.

tryna play it cool (i could be your crush) Ⓔ ☑

wc: 8,545

Wilma is very into Rosh and kind of wants to kiss her. She has a mild crisis about it.

london calling Ⓣ ☑ - with @angelbabysimon

wc: 3,130

When Simon and Wilhelm head to London for their first anniversary, things don't go quite the way they expect...

it takes a fool (but we both are so its okay)

I Lied Ⓣ ☑

wc: 2,685

Between Christmas and New Years, Simon's friends tell him to check instagram.

New Years Resolutions Ⓣ ☑

chapters 3/3

wc: 6, 521

Sara drags Simon out to a New Years party with Felice to stop him from sitting around and pining over Wilhelm who is still stuck at the palace dealing from the fallout.

It gets worse before it gets better  Ⓣ☒

chapters 9/?

wc: 24,739

Simon and Wilhelm are back at Hillerska before the term starts, but they still have to deal with the fallout of the tape.

Red, White, & Royal Blue

YourMusicSucksAndYouLookLikeADickhead Ⓔ ☑

wc: 6,762

In which Alex gets a new neighbour who immediately pisses him off, and they begin blaring their music to communicate with eachother. - aka Alex and Henry get off on the wrong foot, Alex has his bisexual awakening, and Nora deals with Alex's bullshit.

Healthy Choices: Relationships, Sexuality and Family Planning Ⓣ❒

chapters 1/3

wc: 10,420

Alex's high school decides to take a slightly more hands on approach to sex ed, and he finds himself stuck partnered with Henry. And their fake baby.

[skincare-surveyor]

BLACK-OWNED CLEAN SKINCARE BRANDS

Since it's Black History Month, I thought I'd put together a post on Black-owned and founded clean skincare brands.

This is not a comprehensive list of all Black-owned skincare brands, just those I could find that focus on using clean ingredients, which is this blog's focus.

I hope it's informative and brings some new skincare brands to your attention.

CLICK BELOW FOR A-Z LIST.

Beauty Bakerie

Founded by Cashmere Nicole. She wanted to create a makeup and skincare line that catered to her many allergies without sacrificing fun. Their skincare line is a newer addition and focuses on a few key products all with cute coffee shop themes.

BeautyStat Cosmetics

Founded by cosmetic chemist, Ron Robinson. Takes a scientific approach utilizing customer feedback. Their Vitamin C products are most talked-about.

buttah.

Founded by Dorian Renaud. Aimed at meeting the needs of melanin-rich skin. Shea butter is a staple ingredient here, but for those with oily skin, try the Oil-free Hyaluronic Gel Cream.

EADEM

Founded by Marie Kouadio and Alice Lin. Specially formulated skincare for women of color made by WOC chemists, vetted by WOC dermatologists, and tested on different skin tones. Their Milk Marvel Dark Spot Serum is highly talked about.

Epara

Founded by Ozohu Adou, who wanted to create a luxury skincare brand without all the allergens she kept encountering from others. Focuses on the power of African botanicals. Their Moisturizing Face Cream is award-winning. This is a UK brand, but can be shipped.

Fenty Skin

Founded by the ubiquitous Rihanna. An offshoot of Fenty Beauty, which has been a well-known clean beauty brand for years, providing clean makeup formulations with a focus on melanin-rich skin tones. Fenty Skin brings that same ethos to bear on providing clean skincare for all skin types, with a special focus on melanin-rich skin.

Flora & Noor

Founded by Jordan Karim. Focuses on clean, cruelty-free, vegan, halal-certified solutions for melanin-rich skin, particularly those with ongoing concerns like eczema and hyperpigmentation. Their Vitamin C collection is particularly popular, with the Bright Side serum being a bestseller. For more sensitive skin, try the Rose Renewal Moisturizer.

GOLDE

Co-founded by Trinity Mouzon Wofford and Issey Kobori. This brand focuses on harnessing the power of superfoods because good skin depends on so much more than what you're putting on it. Most of their products are dedicated to drink mixes, but their small skincare line has made a big splash with the Clean Greens and Papaya Bright face masks. Perhaps they'll add more to their skincare line in the future.

hyper! Skin

Founded by Desiree Verdeho, who struggled with acne as a teen and decided to seek solutions for others with melanin-rich skin. hyper! is all about treating dark spots and hyperpigmentation. Their Hyper Even serum is award-winning. It seems like they plan to expand their line into other skincare solutions soon, so keep an eye out for that.

KEYS Soulcare

Founded by none other than Alicia Keys. The R&B artist has been very open about her problems with "bad skin," mostly due to cosmetic use -- particularly those used on stage -- and performing under hot stage lights. After trying multiple skincare brands that promised solutions and finally swearing off makeup altogether, Keys started her own skincare brand focusing on clean ingredients, known solutions, and healthy naturals for melanin-rich skin.

Pholk Beauty

Founded by Niambi Cacchioli. Has a melanin-centric approach. "We don't just fade melanin, we balance [it]...because we know that melanin is good for you." Relies on botanicals sourced from Black American farmers. You'll see actives offered here that you won't elsewhere because Pholk is dedicated to harnessing the power of native plants that farmers are already producing, like lemon balm and honeysuckle. Definitely check out the Werkacita Allover Balm, Aloe & Lemon Balm Face Mist, and H2Oil Hemp x Hibiscus Night Oil.

Rose Ingleton MD

Founded by Dr. Rose Ingleton, a dermatologist bringing 20 years of experience in treating people's skin concerns to the skincare industry. These are all clean, vegan, fragrance-free formulas. The ROSE Signature Moisturizer with Peptides & Hyaluronic Acid is a highly popular product. The SuperFruit Brightening Cleanser is a multi-award winner.

Topicals

Founded by Olamide Olowe and Claudia Teng. Not only does Topicals provide scientific solutions for stubborn skincare problems, but they also realize that ongoing skin conditions can affect mental health, and do a lot of mental health advocacy, including a charity fund. The FADED Serum is one of their bestselling products. For dry skin and eczema, try the Like Butter Moisturizer.

Undefined Beauty

Founded by Harvard Business grad, Dorian Morris. Focuses on demystifying natural formulas and providing affordable, clean skincare that works for everyone. The R&R Sun Serum is wildly popular. The R&R line as a whole focuses on harnessing the power of adaptogens in skincare. Perhaps they will expand their focus in the upcoming year to other botanical solutions.

Urban Hydration

Founded by Psyche and Vontoba Terry. Focused on hydrating skin in a cleaner, more natural way while keeping affordability in mind. Also has lines in haircare and bodycare, and a line for men's beard care. A portion of every purchase is donated to charity. Check out the Aloe Vera collection, which hydrates and evens skin tone without harsh actives.

And as a bonus, here's a quick list of Black-owned & Founded Clean Beauty brands in other areas of the industry.

BODYCARE BRANDS: 54 Thrones, CAY SKIN, hanahana beauty, Luv Scrub, OUI the People, Sugardoh

HAIRCARE BRANDS: adwoa beauty, BREAD, Briogeo, Camille Rose, Curlmix, CURLS, Donna's Recipe, melanin, Mielle, Mixed Chicks, Naturalicious, Shea Moisture, Qhemet Biologics

MAKEUP BRANDS: Ami Cole, Danessa Myricks Beauty, Fenty Beauty, Kosas, LAMIK, LYS Beauty, Summer Fridays, Tower 28

[blogdemocratesjr]

Joan of Arc by Scott Bez

The enormity of Joan's pretension was proved by her own unconsciousness of it, which we call her innocence, and her friends called her simplicity. Her solutions of the problems presented to her seemed, and indeed mostly were, the plainest commonsense, and their revelation to her by her Voices was to her a simple matter of fact. How could plain commonsense and simple fact seem to her to be that hideous thing, heresy? When rival prophetesses came into the field, she was down on them at once for liars and humbugs; but she never thought of them as heretics. She was in a state of invincible ignorance as to the Church's view; and the Church could not tolerate her pretensions without either waiving its authority or giving her a place beside the Trinity during her lifetime and in her teens, which was unthinkable. Thus an irresistible force met an immovable obstacle, and developed the heat that consumed poor Joan.

—George Bernard Shaw, Saint Joan

[automatismoateo]

Two Christian ranches, meant to help troubled teens, were hotbeds of abuse. Former residents of Trinity Teen Solutions and Triangle Cross Ranch in Wyoming are speaking out about the abuse they suffered. via /r/atheism

Two Christian ranches, meant to help troubled teens, were hotbeds of abuse. Former residents of Trinity Teen Solutions and Triangle Cross Ranch in Wyoming are speaking out about the abuse they suffered. https://ift.tt/r7uJxFL

Submitted March 12, 2023 at 03:52PM by Leeming (From Reddit https://ift.tt/RSCLPDs)

[placesthatchangedpeople]

Suvivor testimony - Trinity Teen Solutions

I attended Trinity as a teen and have since tried to forget the trauma that happened to me while I was there but have found myself 5 years later, still tortured by the memories. I was your typical rebellious teen- experimenting with alcohol and drugs, defiant, hanging out with older boys, and depressed. However, the punishment I received at trinity for being this way is something I would never wish on my worst enemy. All Trinity did was confuse and lie to my family, and further traumatize me. I was sitting in a car one day after I got out drinking and smoking weed with my old friends 100 times MORE self destructive, alone, and sad than I was the day I went to Trinity. The affects of Trinity led me to be a serious hard drug abuser, something I was never destined to be coming from my loving and supporting family that was only trying to help me. I had no other way to numb the memories and pain. Every other girl I attended with had similar fates- either became serious junkies, or became promiscuous and had children out of wedlock because they were only searching for love and to numb the memories as well. I am being totally honest when I say this- I WOULD HAVE RATHER BEEN IN JAIL.

Why? Many reasons. One, in jail you actually know how long you are going to be there. Trinity is on a "need to know basis." So unless it is information you need to know in a life or death situation, it is withheld from you. The MONTHS never knowing when you will be able to see your family again or be treated like a human being are torture. Two, you can talk to other people in jail and rely on each other for support. At Trinity, the girls are not in any case allowed to be friends or talk to each other without permission. No one is allowed to know why the other one is there. Theyre encouraged to tattle on each other and punished if they do not. This creates a lonely and depressing environment versus having other girls there for support and to share similar struggles with. Three, if you are doing well you will get out sooner and vice versa. At Trinity, no matter what you do, you will be accused of faking it and lying and problems will be made up by staff for you, anything in order to tell your parents you need to be kept there longer. It is biased and decided by unqualified "life coaches" that have simply received an undergrad degree in something like psychology and has no training. I was once told by one of these staff members that I was getting too close with another girl and every time I looked or spoke to this other girl I was tacking on a few months to my stay at Trinity. My final reason is you are given adequate hygiene, food, and clothing in jail. At Trinity, every girl there even though we were all different sizes and body builds were FORCED to eat the exact same portion every single meal and if they didn't eat something on their plate? Punished. This was too much for some girls and never enough for others. Showers were maybe once a week in cold water for 5 minutes. And the underwear, bras, and clothing were reused by girls for over 20 years- it was ratty and disgusting. One girl came back as a staff member 10 years after she had been there and said she recognized her sweat pants and hoodies she wore at age 15. This is pretty amusing to me since TRINITY COSTS NEARLY $300 A DAY. Yet they spent none of this money on clothing or anything else really. Food was ordered cheaply in bulk and the girls made every thing themselves- low cost pasta and rice meals- and if anything started getting used to much and became "too expensive" it was immediately nixed. I was once reprimanded for using the too expensive avocados.

Angie Woodward, the owner. How that name makes me cringe. She is the lovely lady responsible for harming so many teen girls and scamming hundreds of people into dumping her loads of cash for her multiple homes, vacations, and boats, cars, horses, ATVs, etc. that she parades around the girls and rubs in their faces while they are slaving away on her ranch. Angie's father owns the trouble teen boys ranch down the road and is where she learned all of these shaming and fear tactics for the clients and families. The only difference between the two ranches is that the boys one has been closed for abuse, neglect, and fraud, while Angie's is surprisingly still open! She claims to have years of experience and be our on staff nurse but I think I only saw her twice in the whole year and a half I was there- like I said she was busy vacationing. She hires 24 years olds fresh out of undergrad to carry out the dirty work instead who are too fresh in the world and naive to know they are doing something wrong- although a few figured it out and left and have written reviews here themselves that are negative but have been removed. Ill spare you the details of the abuse and neglect that goes on at Trinity- all you need to know is it is a scam with false advertising, AND YOU SHOULD NEVER SEND YOUR DAUGHTER HERE.

[daxieoclock]

💡💡💡

thank you!!!! cause of the team trinity stuff that happened in today's sesh, i'll give you a fact for each of them (even though Stephen is only half my oc djgbjhb and half @triskaidekaphilist's)

1: Lucien has picked more fights than anyone else he knows, and lost most of them. Sometimes, he'll start fights he knows he has no way of winning, just because he feels it'll teach him something. He's not much of a philosopher, because he's a selfish dick and he only cares about his own world, but if he were to ascribe a meaning to it? Because conflict simplifies things. There's no complication there.

If someone's doing something you don't like, you kick the shit out of them and make them stop. If he cared about other people at all, he'd probably take up vigilante justice. Honestly, even as he wants to pay Lena back for punching him in the face, he genuinely adores her. She's probably his favorite person in the world right now, because they are both the sledgehammer solution to a scalpel world.

2: Kaya was fairly sheltered as a child and didn't have many friends, finding her way into the emo, goth and metal kids that hung out together at her high school: all the sad/angry teens wearing primarily black and heavy makeup, sitting at the same table.

Her favorite music has always been country, funny enough, but she still found somewhat of a family among the gothic stylings. Somewhere where her morbid sense of humor, no-nonsense bluntness and cold exterior could be appreciated, and not shunned. Her parents were actually wonderfully supportive, even as they themselves didn't really get it. Honestly, Kaya has probably had the least traumatic past of any Hunters NPC.

3: Stephen doesn't hate Ilse. He's scared of them. Scared of what they represent, scared of the anchor they have to his past, of everyone he's left behind, everything he's left behind.

He doesn't want to be better than Ilse, he just wants Ilse to be worse than him, because it means that he did his best, that he's on pace, that his plan isn't and wasn't wrong. It means that he can be satisfied with who he is and what he's accomplished. That those little baby steps were enough.

But the fact that Ilse has come farther as a student, a Daedalus operative, a person than him in the same amount of time? He and Ilse both came from the same place, the same brand of hell, and they've outpaced him. He looks at them and sees someone so much stronger and smarter and braver than he has ever been, and that fucking terrifies him.

The moment the words "my name is Ilse" left their mouth? That was when he knew. To Stephen, that was when their friendship ended.

[riverdale-retread]

Riverdale S3 E14 (Spoilers)

- Josie and Archie discover the creepy kid Ricky (Joaquin’s brother!) who turns out to be really important.   Archie’s solution to this homeless kid he finds is to sneak him into the house, buy him a burger and leave him at Pop’s all day and it’s only when he’s lost him that he calls the authorities. I thought this was dummy Archie being a dumb, but the scene where he and Ricky play video games is such a callback to S1 when Jughead lived in that house and hung out with Archie playing videogames. Oh.  Archie wants to give the love he still has for Jughead to Ricky, wants to do normal teen boy things together with Jughead, but Jughead is too busy being married to Betty and running his gang full time.  Fred says Archie has ‘a big heart’ but that’s not quite it - Archie needs Jughead to be his bestie again.  That’s why he wants to keep Ricky - he reminds Archie of Jughead.

- Alice tries to sell the Murderhouse.  Manic Alice in “American Beauty” Imma Sell This House mode is really scary. Scarier than Hal has actually ever been.  Betty smiling with her pretty eyes, cheerfully intoning “Google Murder House on Elms Street!” is so cute. Is arson a Blossom thing? Because Betty sets her house on fire, using a candle,  same as Cheryl.

- Reggie calling Veronica “Boss.”  I love it. And now Reggie says “we” about Veggie. I just sit here counting all the times they say ‘we’ back and forth to each other, pretty eyes (hers feline, his puppy dog) glittering.  They say “we” in front of the staff about the Casino.  Oh and the jackass guest that Hiram brings immediately sees how gorgeous Reggie is and calls him ‘Cheekbones.’  Though I agree, I think I might’ve gone with Lips.  And Reggie has a head for business - he keeps track of their take!  Veronica hiring the Pretty Poisons is fun to think about, but all these girls are so tiny and as a short woman with no upper body strength I’m highly skeptical that this will work.

The interior of the Bonne Nuit, by the way, is so gorgeous. I love it. Veronica has wonderful taste.   

- Choni take a turn for the toxic. I had forgotten this because this is not fun. Cheryl using her inherited wealth in a powerplay against Toni doesn’t fit the image I want to have of her. 

- The Kevin-Betty friendship coming to something of a definitive end here.  Betty, just a year after outing Kevin’s private sexual activities to his dad, threatens to do the same again and in print about the Farm ritual she saw, and she’s so confident about it she doesn’t even bother sheathing her claws.  Betty feels ownership over Kevin, not friendship. This has to be the show stating how toxic the straight-girl-with-a-gay-male-friend-she-treats-as-a-pet really is. Death to the Gay Bestie trope!  It’s Riverdale, however, so it’s kind of garbled, because Kevin only gets the means to fire back at Betty (she has so many literal skeletons in her closet) by joining a nutso cult.  But, you know, they tried.

- Gargoyles v Serpents meaning Kurtz v Jughead.  Shouty Jughead makes everyone pause immediately.  Seriously, where does that voice come from?  So Jughead, apparently unaware that he is in this situation because he is avoiding having  a Do you care about the Serpents conversation with  Betty, is now outnumbered in his own gang. He’s usually so sharp and sees things clearly, but this is Betty Adoration Fog, and maybe he’s afraid her answer is No.  I forget how he finally brings Toni & the girls back in, because he does.  

Kurtz is a very worthy adversary, in any case, because Kurtz has moves that Jughead doesn’t, namely, being sadistic and patient.  Jughead is essentially honorable and an impatient Type A.  Kurtz taking a breath before calling Archie Duuude makes me suddenly like him a bit, because that contempt was heartfelt and its delivery top tier.  

Kurtz dropping Fangs, and the Serpent Trinity all falling down towards the ground together presents a rare shot of the three boys from the same angle and it was thrilling.  The three create visual harmony and have great on-screen chemistry. I want there to be more!

Sidebar: Why does Kurtz suddenly go to Riverdale High?  Did he always go to Riverdale High?  I know this isn’t important and I don’t wanna go down some How Big Is Hogwarts rabbit hole, but Kurtz going to school full time strikes me as weird.  Wait, is it a Serpent rule that you have to graduate high school???

- FP mentoring Jughead on how to be a good gang leader while doing the most boring ass paperwork homework for his day job as Sheriff is almost (but not quite) as fun as him in a bow tie and apron whispering about the same at the Diner after hours.  Having ideas is how you get leadership positions in anything, really, including gangs, and also apparently having a dad with middle class professional resources and priorities (a gang that’s supposed to care about ‘credit for college’!) gets you the final boost. 

But...it’s really SWEET PEA with one throat clearing that brings the reluctant Gargoyles in line.   

By the way, when FP says “get paid” is when Fangs smiles, and when FP says “get credit for when you apply for college” is when Sweet Pea smiles.  And then I remembered that Sweet Pea didn’t actually get to go to college and I felt sad. They couldn’t even send him to Riverdale Community College?? Poor baby!

- Gladys is so smart.  She brings in Kurtz (the Gargoyles are an afterthought) to distract Jughead, and gets him to quit working for Veronica Lodge so that she can carry on at the Bonne Nuit and with Hiram with Jughead none the wiser.  

- Hiram is a slaveholder, basically, right? He runs a slave-wages private prison, and again, Veronica is somehow fine with this, even though she’s deadset against drugs.  So drugs are the only illegal activity she’s against.  I guess this is her inner Michael Corleone priorities.

[horizonwitch]

The Archangel Theory - A Possible Explanation to MCR's new symbolism

Hello! This is a very long post, but I hope it’s worth the reading. Sorry.

I am Nana, and today I bring you a fan-theory on the meaning behind MyChem's symbols presented to us in the occasion of the band's return announcement and later on, at the actual reunion concert day.

First Considerations:

1. being it, as the title implies, a fan-theory, I do not claim any of the exposed to be factual when associated to MCR. I bring this thread to you guys in hopes that we can discuss, expand, teach and learn with each other, and maybe come to some sort of conclusion. Riddles are fun to play, especially together. I love riddles in fandom experience. :)

2. I highly apologize for my limited vocabulary and weird phrasing. I am not a native english speaker, but I'll try my best to make this understandable to everyone;

3. Despite my personal beliefs and stupid jokes, I mean no disrespect to any religion or symbol mentioned in here. (just as much as I believe MyChem also doesn't, on the wild possibility of this thread being on point with what they planned, lol).

That being said, before we start, I have some thanks to give:

this theory was only put together thanks to my lovely mychem group chat, composed by Raffs, Clara, Caroline and Hana. thanks for all the time and effort we shared, and for holding my brain with your bare hands when it was about to melt, friends.

Also thanks to Frank Iero himself, for laughing at me on twitter for me not being able to understand the reunion clues, despite "wearing a California 2019 shirt for 6 years". I humbly accept the possibility of this theory having nothing to do with the truth, but I sure hope I can laugh back at you in the end, rat. I love you.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now, let's finally head to The Archangel Theory, or, as I like to call it, The “If We're Not Careful We'll Turn Into Catholics” Theory, and how it all started.

It was Halloween. Everyone here was minding their own damn business (I was being a clown on twitter, Hana was putting on her badass revenge-themed makeup. You know, the usual). And we all know what happened: MCR raised gracefully from the dead, dropping brand new symbolism and a stunning angel image to our poor panicked hearts. A few days later, when Hana’s crying ruined makeup was long gone and everyone calmed the F down a little bit, people started to ask themselves: okay, cool, but what does it mean?

Like many of you, the first thought that crossed my mind was tarot. Because, well, how f-ing cool would it be, right? I draw tarot everyday. I just loved the idea. Mychem posting a latin countdown with some eerie photo was just… yea, I was very excited with this.

Many of us also associated the symbols with past albums and even with the members themselves. All of these theories are very valid to me, and I loved reading them. I agree with many points raised.

Well, everything was fine (as fine as it could be, because I am so damn curious). The Return concert happened at the faithful date of December 20, California. We all freaked out and enjoyed the noble services’ of days_fate and diet_shampoo’s streaming. All that jazz.

But then: well… another angel. I started to think to myself: is this a pattern? The show ends, we get very emotional, everything is okay (i hate this pun) with the world. Frank Iero makes a post-concert post on instagram, talking about how everything was pure Magick. With a K.

For those unfamiliar, this is an occultist term related to Aleister Crowley’s Thelema, to differentiate the religious concept from the “stage magic” that we are used to. A very carefully picked name that I highly doubt someone would drop around without knowing what it implies.... Don’t even start me with the K and C keys being so damn far away from each other on a keyboard.

At this point me and my groupchat were starting to be very done with Frank’s clownery (we indeed love him very much for that), and so we started to hurt our minds every single day since then. that’s the result:

THE ARCHANGEL THEORY

Let’s Return™ to the basics: angels and, probably, tarot.

Funny enough, there are actually angels in tarot cards. There are many types of decks, but for this we are using the most famous one, which most people believe holds ancient symbolism, The Rider-Waite Tarot.

There are many angels and archangels mentioned in the Bible (only a few by name, tho), but only four of them made it into being represented in tarot cards: Uriel, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Let’s get the gang together and meet the holy crew (please, forgive me for the puns).

Uriel:

whose name means “the light of god”, “the flame of god”. It’s the Wise Angel, often pictured as the one who holds books and scrolls and bears holy knowledge and understanding. or Clarity, if you will. They’re sort of the goth one™, associated with the Tartarus and being pictured as pitiless as any demon would; even holding the key to Hell during the end of times, Uriel is described as the angel who watches “over thunder and terror”. Uriel is sometimes even mistaken for a demon (apparently, the eastern catholicism accepts Uriel identity as an archangel, while the western catholicism gives more credit to its dark side, and does not encourage worshiping); this duality comes from the notion that very often, enlightenment may be the end result of dark times. Every archangel has many, I said MANY symbols attached to them, so other elements associated with this angel can be found on the image attached to this post.

About Uriel’s Tarot Card: if you were raised in a catholic family and slept through as much catechism as I did as a kid, maybe you’ll be surprised to know that Lucifer, Satan and Uriel are all different beings. Let it be a lesson: no matter how edgy of a teen you are, please accept knowledge from any possible source. Putting this thread together would’ve been so easier to me now if I did, haha... That being said, our angel Uriel is actually the Devil in the Devil Tarot card, which meaning touches on addiction, obsession, feeling imprisoned or restrained, but it being only an illusion of powerlessness. This card is an invitation to free yourself, fight distractions and temptation, and finally fulfill your destiny. Please, consider that tarot readings are very deep and variable; there’s extensive books only on tarot meaning, so I won’t explore much on each card. that’s just a very general notion.

Some sources also consider Uriel to be the responsible for the change represented in the Death card, despite not being directly pictured in such card. As stated before, Uriel is associated with the concept Death brings, being a turning point, and ending route.

The symbolism presented in the Devil card (as for the Rider-Waiter deck):

“At the foot of the Devil stand a man and a woman, both naked and chained to the podium on which the Devil sits. They appear to be held here against their will – but look closer, and you will notice that the chains around their necks are loose and could be easily removed. Each has small horns on their head, like the devil’s, a sign that they are becoming increasingly like him the longer they stay here. Both have tails, a further symbol of their animalistic tendencies and raw instincts, and the grapes and the fire on their respective tails signify pleasure and lust.”

Poor people. If only they knew better. A lil bit of Clarity, huh?

That’s it for MCR’s clarity symbol, conveniently shaped as a candle.

Michael:

whose name means “who is like god” (being it a rhetorical question, to mean that no one equals to God). It’s the Protector Angel. They’re the leader of angels in the battle against demons, Defender of God’s realm against Satan in the Book of Revelation. Michael is a warrior, and is often seem with the sword in hand, to allure to the idea of bravery. They’re described as the angel of strength, protection and Courage.

About Michael’s Tarot Card: Michael appears on the major arcana Temperance. In fact, even the name “Temperance” comes from the process of refining and strengthening materials in metallurgy. this one likes swords a lot, huh. That’s a card which meaning touches on patience and prudence. It means already having a clear vision and knowing what you want to achieve. Now It’s all about thinking before action, and accepting the balance of things, blending the opposites to achieve an ideal solution. Apparently a very suited card for a warrior of faith. Prepare yourself: in my research, I’ve found a source that associates this card with the color blue (the very same of the archangel) and the musical note G. Yes, the universe has a strange sense of humor.

The symbolism presented in the Temperance card: “The vessels in the angel’s hands represent the vessel that contains eternal life. The flowers are Irises symbolising the goddess Iris who links God to humanity. Iris travels from one end of the world to another, into the depth of the sea and the underworld. The angel’s feet, one on land and one in water, symbolise the unification of the external and internal, conscious and subconscious. It also represents testing the waters before jumping into the unknown. The red wings on the angel represent blood which symbolizes life. The sun conceals a crown which represents a connection to higher power. The triangle on the angel’s dress is an equilateral triangle and symbolise spirit, divinity, fire, life, prosperity, and harmony. It can also symbolise God and the holy trinity. The square outside the triangle represents protection and stability.”

The MCR symbol for Courage is a drop. is it a drop of blood? for an warrior angel and their endless battles on God’s behalf? Of water, the waters of unknown? The water of balance of life? I don’t know.

When Michael / was a young genderless being,/ their father…

Gabriel:

whose name means “strength of god”. It’s the Messenger Angel; Gabriel is often portrayed playing the trumpet, to make announcements of God’s will. (many angels play the trumpets on Revelations book,, but Gabriel seems to be the most intimately attached to this concept). In the hierarchy of angels, Gabriel seems to occupy a very high position, being knows as the “Left Hand of God” (our Michael aforementioned being the Right-hand angel).

Their famous appearances on the Bible includes appearing to Zechariah and the Virgin Mary, foretelling the births of John the Baptist and Jesus. Islam also has Gabriel appearing for many prophets, telling them the divine plans. In a way, all those messages are basically callings to a higher purpose, a proof of faith, a personal Sacrifice. This idea is reiterated by the symbolism of Gabriel’s tarot card.

Gabriel is also one of the Angels of Death (depending on the religious we are speaking about, there are over 14 different angels with this role). Not in a dark way, their role is to comfort and bring peace to the deceased, guiding them into the light. Gabriel is therefore an angel of mercy, redemption achieved through a proof of faith (often a self-sacrifice, of any nature), after a fair judgement. speaking of which…

About Gabriel’s tarot card: Gabriel appears on the major arcana Judgement, which meaning touches on taking responsibility for your actions, speaking the truth. It’s a beginning/ending type of card, but a different kind of change than the one represented on one of Uriel’s card, Death. While Death brings something unstoppable, more powerful than anyone’s options, Judgement usually portraits something you can actually choose to take part in. But it also your responsibility any consequences of not taking this step. A fair judgement, indeed.

The Symbolism presented in the Judgement card: “The angel with the Trumpet could be a reference to the angels and the seven trumpets in Revelation, bringing apocalypse and resurrection. The white banner with the red cross can be St. George Flag, and a reference to Saint George gives Judgement the symbolism of sacrifice done in the name of our faith. Both the flag and the trumpet are military symbols of authority. A man, a woman and a child are being called from the tomb of ego consciousness. The three people are reflected on the other side of the river, another symbol of the soul’s victory over death. The three people are also a symbol of the three pillars of the tree of life. The man and the woman has changed side from the familiar feminine on the left and masculine on the right. In Judgement it is the other way around. Perhaps it is to unify us and to tell us to look at a situation from a different perspective, from within. You are seeing the pillars from the Angel’s perspective. This symbolises to raise your thinking and ask for Divine Perspective. The mountains represent the structure that surrounds us all.”

Calling all units! Time for the ultimate vibe check.

I guess that’s it for our third MCR symbol, Sacrifice, shaped as hand. Is it a left hand, just like one of Gabriel’s titles? that would be interesting.

But not so fast.

Now we come to an interesting point. Gabriel is the first of our angels to have a sculpture used by My Chem. :) It’s actually endearing how, if this assumption is correct, they chose the messenger archangel to bring the good news: mcr is alive!

About Gabriel’s sculpture: our Return angel, as some of us already know by this point, is actually a piece called “Angelo e Alma”, by italian artist Pasquale Rizzoli. It is located on Cella Magnani, a memorial chapel of the Magnani family, inside Certosa di Bologna, which is a very antique monastery, later transformed on a monumental cemetery for many italian families. You can take a look here, it’s stunningly beautiful.

Finished in 1906, this piece was a commission by the widow of a war veteran called Natale Magnani, who apparently died young. As far as I understand written italian, since I speak portuguese (latin languages perks, yey!), it’s still difficult to me to do further research on this family. Being it an old, traditional italian family, there’s tons of Magnanis, but there’s little to no info on Natale or his wife’s lives on the internet, it seems. If you’re italian and have any info about this, please comment. It can actually be relevant to this thread.

This sculpture portraits an angel ascending to heavens, guiding a soul (represented as a woman in a long dress). There’s rose branches and lilies at the feet of both the angel and the soul, as they fly together. These flowers pay homage to Magnani’s family blazon, as stated by the Storia i Memoria di Bologna Project website, that also offers on their site a brief explanation on the meaning behind the many other plants on this piece. they all basically allure to death, sleep, and resurrection. you can check it out here.

The presented symbolism, being an angel appearing to a soul in their travel to the spiritual realm, and even the flowers used, lead me to conclude that this sculpture very likely pictures our Archangel Gabriel, in their judgement roles again.

Now, our holy rpg party already has a mage, a paladin and a bard. It’s time to introduce the most underappreciated (and my personal favorite) class:

Raphael:

whose name means “God heals”. Raphael is the angel for healing, thus making ‘whole’ everything that has been broken. They’re also a patron for lovers, role that he plays by using his healing powers in a non-literal way. Pay attention to the “fixing the broken and making it a whole again” part, that’s the connotation.

Both of these titles come from the roles Raphael played, depicted on the scriptures: the most famous ones being when Raphael was sent by the Lord to heal Tobit of his blindness and to deliver Sarah, his future daughter-in-law, from the demon Asmodeus, who killed every man she married on their wedding night before the marriage could be consummated.

Another famous role commonly related to Raphael is about the Pool of Bethesda. Despite not being mentioned by name, manuscripts of John 5:1–4 describe an angel that blessed this pool, healing the illness of those who touched its waters:

"an angel of the Lord descended at certain times into the pond; and the water was moved. And he that went down first into the pond after the motion of the water was made whole of whatsoever infirmity he lay under". It’s usually given credit to Raphael for this action, since they’re seem using healing power to fulfill God’s will in many occasions through the Bible.

About Raphael’s Tarot card: Raphael appears on the major arcana The Lovers, as the angel blessing the couple depicted. This is a card about romantic, even sexual, attraction, but not purely that. It’s about finding peace within yourself, and in someone else, about the journey to pick “the one” for you. Making a whole out of two halves is a common concept associated with this card.

Symbolism presented on The Lovers card: “the man and the woman in the image are being protected and blessed by an angel above. The couple seems secure and happy in their home, which appears to be the Garden of Eden. The fruit tree with the snake behind the woman is a reference to that story, which tells of humanity's fall into temptation and into the realm of flesh and sensuality. The angel depicted here is Raphael, the angel of air - who is of the same element of the zodiac sign that governs this card: Gemini. Air is associated with mental activity, and communication in particular, which is the foundation for healthy relationships. His blessing seems to give this card a sense of balance and harmony, the symbolization of union in a grand and cosmic sense between two opposing forces.”

Another source adds: “The couple stands in a beautiful, fertile landscape, reminiscent of the Garden of Eden. Behind the woman stands a tall apple tree, with a snake winding its way up the trunk. The serpent and apple tree represent the temptation of sensual pleasures that may take one’s focus away from the Divine. Behind the man is a tree of flames, which represent passion, the primary concern of the man. The twelve flames suggest the twelve zodiac signs, the symbol of time and eternity. The man looks to the woman, who watches the angel, showing the path of the conscious to the subconscious to the super-conscious, or from physical desire to emotional needs to spiritual concerns. The volcanic mountain in the background is rather phallic and represents the eruption of passion that happens when man and woman meet in full frontal nudity.”

Despite the latter being a bit too horny for my tastes, lol, both descriptions reiterate Raphael’s influence on the role of patronizing health and union, a journey of Devotion.

Oh, about the MCR symbol, shaped as a half-sun. at first I couldn’t find a correlation to Raphael and this sun shape, as for the first three angels it was very clear to me since just as I started reading about them. Then I realized the huge sun portrayed on The Lovers card, behind Raphael.

Despite holding its individual meanings, Tarot cards are not meant to me taken isolatedly. (that’s one of the reasons many people are not found of the single card yes-or-no type of drawing). That being said, it is not a surprised to find traces of one card on another, and many shared symbolism. As for the sun, it appears multiple times on the Rider-Waite deck, but only one card holds the same exact half shaped, upside down, centered sun as the MCR symbol. and that’s The Lovers. :)

Now, our romantic archangel lead us to a very lovely part:

About Raphael’s Sculpture: as we waited for MCR to dramatically drop the curtain at the reunion show, we were being watched over by a piece nicknamed “Angel of the Waters,” from the Bethesda Fountain (have you heard this name before?), located in the Bethesda Terrace, Central Park, in NYC. sculpted by Emma Stebbins in 1864, this piece’s history, together with Central Park’s history can be fully read in this awesome article that my friend Clara found: here.

But since we’re already here, let’s try to make a shorter version, focusing on what’s relevant to this thread.

Upon release, the angel, which stands and above and blesses a water fountain, was directly associated with the Bethesda Pool mentioned in the Bible, and the healing acts of Raphael. On the dedication pamphlet it was quoted the very same passage from the Gospel of John, chapter 5, verses 2-4 I’ve mentioned before. It’s a shame I couldn’t find any pictures of this pamphlet on the internet. Old documents, huh. NY people, if you have access to this, I’d love to see it.

If we stopped there, it would be enough evidence to assume the connection to Raphael, but there’s more! There’s some particularities about this statue.

Its conception was a huge deal: Emma was the first woman to receive a major sculptural commission in New York City. Also, she had a female lover, the world-famous American actress Charlotte Cushman, who, for Cedar Miller, historian that wrote about Central Park and Emma’s statue, holds a huge impact on the Angel of Waters actually making into existence. In 1869, Cushman was diagnosed with breast cancer. In addition to having two mastectomies, Cushman tried water cures in England. (Water cures were a big craze from the 1830s through the 1860s). The historian who wrote about them finds it another connection to the statue itself. Unfortunately, Cushman's treatments were ultimately unsuccessful, she passed away in 1875. Emma followed her not long after, in 1882. To this day, the statue remains, and to NY is a gathering place to find tranquility, peace of mind, even in the darkest times through the its 141 years of existence. It’s a place to heal yourself.

It’s not your average Raphael statue.

We have the archangel connection, a devoted couple's backstory, and lesbian/sapphics rights. I don’t know about you, but I can even picture Gerard Way carefully picking this himself, haha.

Oh, a spicy fact I’ve learned while writing this: This angel sculpture is actually even older in MCR’s history, tracing back to revenge era merch. (I didn’t have much access to mcr merch back in the day so I didn’t know about this, I apologize!)

I guess someone got nostalgic for some catholic aesthetics, huh. Bless!

Angels in tarot, bonus addition:

It is valid to mention that not only all of the 4 mentioned archangels have their individual cards, they also appear together in a single card, The Wheel of Fortune. In this card, each angel can be seen in a corner: Raphael (Aquarius) is upper left, Gabriel (Scorpio) is the eagle, Michael (Leo) is the lion, and Uriel (Taurus) is the bull, appearing in disguise, a common thing for angels though the scriptures, it seems.

If you draw tarot, you understand how big of a deal it is. If you’re not familiar, here’s the basic notion: “The wheel of fortune is a card about cyclical change. The wheel keeps on rolling, churning events in a ceaseless progression of ups and downs, either way freeing us from the past. No one can escape its cyclical action, which can feel somewhat terrifying -- no matter whether we are rising or falling. When one is balanced on top of the wheel, there is a moment of crystal clarity. However, the only part of the wheel that's actually not going up and down is the hub, which represents your eternal self. Every one of us will occupy all the points on the wheel at one point or another. The cycle of the wheel is its lesson -- and we can learn to take comfort in it. If you don't like the look of things right now, just wait -- things will change. Of course, if you do like the look of things right now, enjoy it while it lasts, because that will change too!”

It is quite a powerful card that holds all of the aforementioned symbolism. Woa.

More symbolism seem on this card includes:

“The Wheel of Fortune card shows a giant wheel, with three figures on the outer edges. Four Hebrew letters – YHVH (Yod Heh Vau Heh), the unpronounceable name of God – are inscribed on the wheel’s face. There are also the letters TORA, thought to be a version of the word Torah, meaning ‘law’, or TAROT, or even ROTA (Latin for ‘wheel’). The middle wheel has the alchemical symbols for mercury, sulphur, water and salt – the building blocks of life and the four elements – and represents formative power. On the outer circle is a snake, the Egyptian god Typhon (the god of evil), descending on the left side. The snake also represents the life force plunging into the material world. On the right side rises the Anubis, the Egyptian God of the dead who welcomes souls to the underworld. And on top of the wheel sits the Sphinx, representing knowledge and strength.”

THE SECOND SET OF SYMBOLS - STILL A MYSTERY

So, after all this, if any of this is correct at all, we just learned the meaning behind the first four MCR symbols, released on halloween: Clarity, Courage, Sacrifice and Devotion.

Now, what about the ones released at the reunion show, on the merch truck? Well, my friends, we still have a lot to think about.

I am a doctor, and in my profession there’s a saying which instruct us to always think of what seems like a complicated situation, with many possibilities, as a single disease causing many effects. That was my train of thought as I tried to associate these new symbols with the Archangels that we already have. It may have nothing to do with that at all, but it’s worth trying.

Differently from the first set, the second set didn’t get an official release, and does not hold text captions to guide us on it’s meaning. the symbol shapes, however, are easier to associate with tarot cards than the first ones, in my opinion. I’ve seen people online trying to guess it too.

Having the angels and their aforementioned traits as a guiding line, I used some symbolism associated to each one to connect them to a new symbol, as you can see on the picture attached to this post.

I have some major problems with this, tho, the biggest one being the order of the symbols not matching the first set sequence. We had Uriel (Clarity) / Michael (Courage) / Gabriel (Sacrifice) and Raphael (Devotion). The second set order was Sword / Moon / Tower / Wand, so the sequence goes like Michael / Gabriel / Uriel / Raphael. It doesn’t match. Please, help me.

THINGS THAT KEEP ME UP AT NIGHT: ABOUT WITCHCRAFT AND… SOLDIERS?

During the past weeks of my life I’ve been researching all types of things to break this down, so I came across some very unsettling things that may be just wild coincidences or... something else? Just in case, I am putting them here in case anyone finds some connection that I couldn’t.

Sigils and Pagan influences, maybe?

As some people on twitter and reddit noticed, Gerard was using a sigil on his arm that reads “My Chemical Romance”. Every Archangel mentioned here also holds its own sigil, which is shown on the picture attached to this post. While I was excited about the dates for new concerts, I started to think, is there anything special about these dates? I tried to not overthink it because we probably have major influences of disponibilities and,,, Label issues...I don’t know? some very practical stuff going on. But still, I came across an interesting match.

There’s 8 sabbaths, composing the Wheel of the Year, “an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by many modern pagans, consisting of the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them.”

eight sabbaths, eight symbols, huh. Initially, I tried to connect each symbol to a sabbath, but it was very… not satisfying enough to me, so I’m leaving that out; nonetheless, I still believe they hold some meaning similarities.

And it doesn’t stop there.

That our lovely wheel of the year: here. We’re using a northern hemisphere version, since MCR is based in the USA.

The band returned on Halloween, which is the Samhain that occurs between Oct 31 / Nov 1. There’s some minor variation on dates because the Celtic day begins and ends at sunset.

Return Show took place in California, Dec 20: which marks the start of Yule. (Yule dates range from Dec 19 to Dec 22, for the Celtic calendar reasons)

The next sabbath is Imbolt, that takes place on Feb 1 / Feb 2. MCR has nothing announced for this date until now.

2020 concerts will happen during the week of March 20, 21, 25, 28 and 29, In Australia, New Zealand and Japan, as for now. That marks the start of the Ostara sabbath, which start range is March 20/21.

so… can we expect something (anything?) being announced at Feb 1 or 2, or near that? What about all the remaining sabbaths? Is that a reach? is it related at all? oof.

Who said Danger Days isn’t goth enough?

Another VERY interesting thing my group chat found on the internet during our MCR tarot obsession. If this theory is correct, this is not the first time they would be alluring to it. Please look at this pic of Grace Jeanette, The Girl in DD universe, posing with the mailbox on the set of the “Art Is The Weapon”/“Na Na Na” video shoot (2010). (Exact source and photographer unknown; likely taken by Jeanette’s mother). (big thanks to tumblr user killjoyhistory).

Bellow the big “OH HELL” we have four tarot cards, on the very same deck we used for this thread, the Rider-Waite deck. The cards are The Tower, The Devil, Death and Three of Wands.

Please note that it may have no correlation to future works, since DD itself had religious symbolism with the Phoenix Witch and this mailbox (go read the comics if you didn’t already. DD rights!), it may be a DD-only thing. Also, please note that 3 out 4 of theses cards were already mentioned in this thread, all possibly related to archangel Uriel.

To wage this war against your faith in me, MCRMY.

So. This one will sound weird and maybe a reach too, but, hey, mychem is alive and breathing, I guess there’s nothing really impossible, haha….?

Are we all familiar with Gerard liking a lot that green coat? After all those years, I guess so.

Indeed, our lovely frontman used yet another green jacket as his return outfit. This time, it was a military one. As a foreigner, and being very ignorant on how the US Army works, I got curious about the badge on his jacket. Maybe that’s common sense to you guys and I’m just embarrassing myself, but hey! be kind to someone who’s sort of dying inside after all this thinking process, would you?

The badge on Gerard’s jacket happens to be from the 1st Armored Division, a.k.a the Old Ironsides, named after an old ship (and the world's oldest commissioned naval vessel still afloat).

Actually, the nickname “Old Ironsides” trace back to England in 17th century, during their Civil War, but I didn’t find many relevant content / possible connections, besides them being mostly Protestant, in terms of religion… referring to them after all this catholic-conception angel talk is some sort of metaphorical war going on, MCR? Who knows. History-loving english folks, I’m counting on you too now to confirm this, lmao!

The American side of the “Old Ironsides” term, after being passed down from England during their Independence Wars (please be kind with me, my knowledge about american independence is almost 100% from Hamilton the musical lmao, help me) apparently resides, mostly on the US Army/Navy.

Interesting coincidences (?) about this: the Old Ironside ship, aka USS Constitution, has a familiar date on its history: November 1. I’m quoting its construction period info: “Her keel was laid down on 1 November 1794 at Edmund Hartt's shipyard in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Captain Samuel Nicholson and master shipwright Colonel George Claghorn.”

I didn’t read much about it since I’m already at edge with everything I’ve been researching but, it seems it was a very adored ship. In fact, one of the reasons it’s still in active service it’s because a poet even made it a famous poem about this ship, that you can read here. It’s symbolic and adored, it seems.

About the homonymous 1st Armored Division of the US Army, which badge Gerard used during the return show: being the first armored division of the U.S. Army to see battle in World War II, it also holds a huge historical meaning.

Again, I don’t have much info to share about this and I think some of you will find possible connections on this better than I would.

But wtf does it have to do with all the angels, Nana?

Well, as mentioned before, angels fight battles in the name of God. They’re heaven’s military. Michael, especially, is a warrior angel and leads God’s troupes against the demons.

Something interesting I’ve found relating Gabriel (which statue, let’s not forget, was commissioned by a war widow) to the war concept was the hebrew poem "Elifelet" (אליפלט) written by Nathan Alterman in 1958, often turned into music and played on the israeli radio. it tells of a heroic, self-sacrificing (hm…) israeli soldier being killed in battle. Upon the protagonist's death, the angel Gabriel descends to Earth, in order to comfort the spirit of the fallen hero and take him up to Heaven. It’s very touching, and you can read it here.

I’m not saying any particular work like this poem is relevant to MCR’s possible new concept. (let’s not be political here, but also be honest: Israel wars are a delicate matter to bring up). We’re solely working with symbolism and history. Please keep that in mind.

MCR has touched on war thematics before in many occasions (I will not mention all of them, as I believe that as a fandom, we’re aware of that, and we can help new fans to understand it if needed. This text is already TOO LONG). Maybe it’s time for them to talk about some conflicts again, literal or metaphorical? Let’s wait and see.

Oh, one last thing. There’s actually a whole another navy air test and evaluation squadron, the Antarctic Development Squadron Six (VXE-6 or ANTARCTIC DEVRON SIX, commonly referred to by its nickname, The Puckered Penguins). They’re based on California (lmao) and their motto is… Well, “Courage, Sacrifice, Devotion”. Uriel kinda left behind again, huh. I’m sorry sweetie.

Again, I apologize if this last section (or even the whole thing..haha…) looks far-fetched, but I just… had to take it out of my chest, sorta? Sorry.

That concludes our Archangel Theory. Thank you if you took your time to read through it all.

List of things to maybe expect in the future:

Something on Feb 1 / Feb 2

Two more angel statues, being them related to Uriel and Michael in some sort of way. I’ve tried to find any suitable matches but… there’s just too many, and as we’ve seen it may even not be officially claimed which angel is portrayed. So let’s wait and see.

More pagan symbolism?

Something about War??

Cryptid posts related to UK and paganism, January 17th and January 24th.

## EDIT (01/12): about new mcr cryptid posts...

If you’re following MCR new updates, as for now you’re aware of the United Kingdom Stuff going on... Interesting coincidences (or is it?) about those:

Both posts were made on the same day the lunar cicle changes. This month, the moon shows up a different form every friday, so maybe prepare you heart for January 17th and 24th. Also, I believe they’re using London time for the updates. in fact, the most recent post (the video with theban alphabet) was posted only 30 minutes after midnight in London. So I’m adding that to our list of things to expect in the future.

Also, someone at warner might be in trouble right now. the ig account for Warner Music Artistic Services (@wmas) posted a variation of the video posted by MCR, only a day later, featuring another order for the theban caracters, a slightly different UK flag (it was somehow merged with a picture? it’s difficult to tell), and a new frame that consists of a forest, similar to the one Gerard posted on his own instagram, and the one featured as background for the skeleton holding a witchcraft-related dagger photo from 2 weeks ago. Differently from the previous mcr video, which was silent, this one featured a sound, if my ears are not mistaken, a very dramatic C# note played on piano or organ (church instruments, huh. funny. but it could be worse, at least is not a G note...)

The video was labeled as LFG, that could mean a million of things. the most relevant ones, I believe, could be “Looking For A Group”, a classic D&D/RPG term (If I close my eyes long enough I can hear distant circus music playing in my head, for I have compared the four archangels to a holy RPG party weeks ago...)or “London Forest Gate”, a neighbourhood in London. please tell me if you have any ideas about what else it could mean, haha....

This video was deleted, but you can still find it around on twitter.

Well, that’s it for now. I’ll keep updating this post as more content is released. Keep running!

[almasidaliano]

because idk.. i just- i wanna know how to recover from the way he broke me. everything starts there. that’s the root. and i say yanno, it is what it is- and rationalize him and i talk and still i feel this hole this emptiness this longing. always disappointing myself, believing in him. hating myself for doing so when he never believed in me. and he’s here, i guess now.. and it’s better than nothing- or its supposed to be. but they feel the same. so nothings changed. he’s indifferent to whether i stay. he only cares when we’re dead and grief sets in. but pride consumes the grief- hes resistant to growth.

and i keep trying to prove myself.

why am i always having to prove myself? because i came from him & he was supposed to believe in me.

but he didn’t.

and i had moms yanno? but moms resented (still lowkey resents) my brother and i because he left. he was there w my brother tho. we reminded her of the pain it brought her. my mom did it alone but the price of that was her presence. she was always away. like now, i miss my mom. it’s mother days soon and i just wanted to see them. plans have now changed bc of a job, great money tho. i’ll see her for like 30 seconds. and then poof gone again. but it’s for us yanno? so i should be more understanding right? except i feel like i’m 7 again. and 8. and 9. and 10 through fucking 16. and she dryly supported me. tainted my visions with her preferences. everything was for her. and she was the parent who kind of stayed so anything for her. be expendable, dependable, accessible, always. i can please people so well because since birth i’ve been trying to get someone to give my existence approval. worth. and yes it comes from me- but when trying to get there this is the track i follow. so i don’t get far..

i choked down depression and anxiety and trauma- i beat myself just to knock out the demons and i tried to be everything, tried to do everything. (sound like me? lol) the problem? to do that i couldn’t be me. and the more i compromised me the worst i felt. and then i try to be me and i’m liked- but not understood.

i’ve never really been understood.

hell, i’ve never really understood myself. which makes it even harder to express and try to explain to others. but its like i came from you? how could you look at me so blankly, so foreignly? because all i’ve ever wanted was a family. i wanted family dinner and vacations. family homes. i wanted to grow up with some people for decades. i wanted to see my people in the stands cheering for me. i wanted to be held by arms other than my own when i cried at night. someone to discipline me, and guide me not teach me self sufficiency and preservation and then weigh me down w tasks. my mom throws things in faces. she refused to be a statistic . teen mom in new orleans? life’s over - she was gonna be different prove em wrong. and she did. she doing it. however, everything had to seem a way. still, that’s how my mother operates. she specializes in masks. so as her offspring- gotta make her look good support the image and shit. my plan/ dreams/ inspirations - she don’t like how it fit in the picture. so she tries to manipulate and i peep and concede . until i didn’t. and i was belittled chastised and discouraged. discouraged to be me. because no one wants someone like that- because no ones gonna stay or put up with that. because i’m broken and need to be fixed. and i just - i cant understand it.

what about me, makes people opt out of fighting? or trying ? or staying? am i just not something worth fighting for?

my insecurity starts there.

it’s like what did they see in me? or what didn’t they?

she named me diamond- because of the twinkle in my eye. i was so aware- didn’t even cry. super developed smart. quick learner. cute kid people liked me. intelligent athletic hardworking fast learner - stuco- early grad - all the scholarships i obtained - speaking for a donor gala - my literary works. i was president of organizations - great teen of america - gave a sermon - i just wanted to be seen. to finally be worth a moments notice. to finally be intriguing enough to explore and nurture. everybody always say oh you always been independent you self sufficient and i still don’t understand how that equaled, stand alone. i have empathic gifts. literary gifts. my mind is an outlandish tool. she named me after a commodity. something precious and overly valued, something cherished . key word ? THING not a title of a person- but i am a thing. still a commodity indeed. however undervalued abused neglected and disregarded. the irony. it’s like, my mom believes she royalty and i won’t knock it- but that would make me a princess or heiress to a throne type shit. but i’m cinderella and tiana and jasmin and ariel and belle and all of them yanno. except there was/is no magic here- so i wasn’t whisked away- proofed the answer- granted a solution or guide- i didn’t get the every lasting hope sprinkled on my storybook.

so i’m here now.. a princess. who may never become a queen.

however, it’s deeper than that. the reason i can’t believe you love me, or you’ll stay- is because they didn’t. and i’m still fighting for their approval or acceptance . while simultaneously tryna get them to give that to ME .

i just — i see your family right? everyone around me has family. has support has love. a mother’s love. a fathers protection. my little sisters all daddy’s girls.

and then there’s me..

the prototype.

i just think- fathers walk brides down the aisle. for me, i could never fantasize it. it was supposed to be my big brother. all i had, for light? was my siblings. and i have 9 . but i mean denzel and trinity. i was never going to be alone. as long as i had them. and i just knew i always would. i’m dumb close w my other brother ty now and that’s a blessing because he and trin are my hope. my other siblings i love, however i fear i cannot guide and or save. and there’s distance yanno? charley and i click HARD but he won’t talk to me.. no one talks to me..

but losing my brother just yelled - you know nothing. you’re not safe. no one will stay. no one can stay. and i can’t help but feel like its hopeless now. because trinity has always conceded with my mother for easier interaction and denzel and i, were individuals he and i could touch base more. we grew up together saw it all. so like now- trinity has a shifted opinion leaning to back my mom. so i now have that disconnect with her. so sometimes i don’t feel safe in her. my brother ty is a sociopath. who most sincerely doesn’t or rarely and even then very minimally, expresses emotions . he thinks logically and moves in ways to benefit him. he is amazing- he just doesn’t always (most always) have the capability of comforting or offering advice on most common things.

so it’s me. the next up- meant to lead and guide and protect. - except i’m a mess. and no one believes in me anyway.

thanks for listening.

-daliano

[pamphletstoinspire]

February, the month dedicated to the Holy Family

THE REARING OF CHILDREN by the Carmelites of the Holy Trinity in Washington

More than a century ago, on April 9th, 1888, Therese Martin entered the Carmel of Lisieux where she was to die 9 years later in the odor of sanctity. But we should make no mistake: St. Therese did not become a Saint in 9 years. The young girl of 15 who crossed the threshold of Carmel that day had already advanced quite far on the "straight way that leads to Heaven". Her parents were her first "Novice Masters" and their own holiness strongly influenced the future Saint. It is certainly worth noting that both Mr. and Mrs. Martin are candidates for beatification. They have already passed the first step towards canonization by being declared Venerable. Many of the letters written by St. Therese's mother are still extant and, besides giving us many details about the Martin family, they form almost a treatise on Catholic education.

Mrs. Martin understood very well that Catholic education means much more than morning and evening prayer, attendance at Mass and sending the children to a good Catholic school. After bestowing natural life, parents must see to it that their children receive also supernatural life through Baptism. And then, they have to foster the development both of the body and of the soul. Mrs. Martin, as a truly Catholic mother, always gave priority to the soul. She considered her children as a sacred trust received from God and never lost sight of this important truth: a child is not a plaything.

If baptism removes original sin, it nevertheless leaves in the soul the four wounds of malice, infirmity, ignorance and concupiscence. Anyone who has been around little children knows that this is no mere theory. Very soon little ones begin to manifest evil tendencies. Too often, parents smile at these childish outbursts of anger, jealousy, stubbornness, pride, etc... which they even consider "cute". No, a child is NEVER CUTE when he is stubborn, proud, etc... Vices are like weeds. If you uproot them as soon as they show up, you will pull the whole thing out without difficulty.

But, do not weed your garden for a few weeks... and you will see the result! If children are corrected from their early childhood, the whole task of education will be much easier. Mrs. Martin never showed any weakness. She never allowed stubbornness or childish whims. Writing to her brother about Pauline (the future Mother Agnes of Jesus), she could say: "I have never spoiled her, and LITTLE THOUGH SHE WAS, I never let anything pass unchecked. Without making a martyr of her, I nevertheless made her obey." Children can easily be "fussy" at table. St. Therese's parents never gave way on this point. At table, children had to behave themselves and no grumbles at dishes they did not like much were ever tolerated. This may seem trivial matter, and how often parents take the easy way out by just yielding to their children. No one will deny that it is a trying task to train children to eat everything, but it is of much greater importance than it may seem at first sight. In fact, you do not only train your children's eating habits, you also train their will, and they will need a strong will to remain Catholic in our apostate world. In Lent, Mrs. Martin would subject the menu to some restrictions and all the fasts of the Church were scrupulously observed, which is an example all Catholic families should follow. It proves to be a great means of promoting a true spirit of mortification in the children.

You may raise the objection: "What a dull life for children!" Oh, no! The Martin family was happy and cheerful and the five girls were very lively. Mrs. Martin had a real gift for stimulating the generosity of her children. She always used supernatural motives to persuade them to fulfill their duties: a sinner to convert, to console Our Lord, etc... In a letter, she reports that her eldest daughter, Marie, valiantly faced the dentist -- remember, they did not put your mouth to sleep in those days! -- to obtain graces for her grandfather who had died recently. Marie was only 9 years old then, and she even felt sorry when the dentist did not pull out her tooth. "It is a pity", she exclaimed, "Grandpa would have left Purgatory!" 

Later on, when her eldest daughters had reached their teens, Mrs. Martin knew how to let them talk freely with her. She deemed it very important that her girls could express their mind fully so that, with much tact and kindness, she could rectify her daughters' judgment and teach them how to look at everything from the standpoint of Faith. The best praise of her "educational system" was given her by her own daughters at the process of beatification of St. Therese: "We were not spoiled. Our mother watched very carefully over her children's souls, and not the smallest fault ever went unreproved. Her training was kind and loving, but attentive and thorough."

St. Therese of the Child Jesus is probably the only Saint about whose childhood we have so many details. In the first four and a half years of St. Therese's life, Mrs. Martin wrote over 120 letters, mainly to her brother and to her daughter Pauline. These letters are an invaluable source of information. They reveal to us the dawn of sanctity in a soul as well as the important part played by the parents in the formation of a Saint. In spite of all her good qualities, St. Therese was not born a Saint. Like the rest of us, she had been wounded by original sin and if her defects were small, they were nevertheless real. there is, for instance, the delightful incident of the two sugar rings, a treasure for a little girl. St. Therese, who had a heart of gold, resolved to give one of the rings to her sister Celine. Alas, on the way home she lost one of the precious rings. What was she to do? Should she give the only ring left to Celine or keep it for herself? The shrewd little girl soon found the solution to this dilemma and declared that, unfortunately, it was Celine's ring that got lost! And the Saint comments: "See, how from childhood we instinctively safeguard our own interests!" And who will not see the "daughter of Eve" in the little Therese who thought she would have looked much nicer with her arms bare when her mother had her wear a pretty dress but with long sleeves?! St. Therese had remarkable qualities too, especially her crystal-clear honesty. Mrs. Martin could write, with some legitimate parental pride: "The little one would not tell a lie for all the gold in the world." Little Therese would always avow her baby faults to her parents without seeking any excuse and would then ask for forgiveness and await her punishment. There is something very charming in this innocent child and it is best expressed in Mrs. Martin's own words, in a letter to Pauline: "She (Therese) had broken a small vase, the size of my thumb, which I had given to her that morning. As usual when she has any accident, she came at once to show it to me. I showed some displeasure. Her little heart swelled...A moment later, she ran to me and said: 'Don't be sad, Mother, when I earn money, I promise you I will buy you another.' As you see it will be a while before I get it!"

St. Therese was an oversensitive little girl. Her eyes would easily fill with tears. One day Celine accused her of "bringing up her dolls badly and letting them have their way." That was enough to make Therese cry. Yet she did not have a weak character, on the contrary she had a very strong will and could even be stubborn. Referring to her two main "weaknesses", i.e. her oversensitiveness and her strong will, St. Therese wrote: "With such dispositions, I feel sure that, had I been brought up by careless parents, I would have become very wicked, and would maybe even have lost my soul." Such a statement should arouse in parents a salutary fear and make them realize their responsibility. Try to imagine what St. Therese would have become if she had spent most of her time sprawled on the carpet watching TV or listening to rock music, if she had been free to indulge all her whims...A good form of examination for parents would be the answer to the following question: "Would St. Therese have become a Saint if she had been brought up the way I bring my children up?" If the answer is "no", then think of the account Mrs. Martin would have had to render to God if, through a careless upbringing, she had deprived God and the world of St. Therese... We are sure you will then lose no time in reforming your method of education, for the greater good of your soul and of your children's souls.

Let us place ourselves at Mrs. Martin's school. The first thing to bear in mind is that, by baptism, any child is God's child. Several times a day, Mrs. Martin would put on her little girl's lips this little prayer: "My God, I give You my heart; Take it, please, so that no creature may possess it, but You alone, Jesus." St. Therese was taught to do everything to please God, and for love of Jesus. One day, Therese could not open the door of the room where Celine was having her lessons. In her frustration, she lay down in front of the door. Her mother told her that she should not behave like this. But the next day, when she found herself before the closed door, she lay down on the floor again. Her sister Mary told her: "Little Therese, you hurt the little Jesus very much when you do this." Therese looked up at her sister. She had understood and she never did it again. Her mother initiated her from a very early age in the art of making sacrifices and when St. Thérèse wrote that since the age of three she had never refused anything to the Good God, it was a tribute not only to her personal holiness but also to Mrs. Martin's method of education.

There is no cry-room in France and St. Therese had to behave herself in church. She loved to go to Mass and at two and a half she would cry if she could not go not only to Mass but also to Vespers. Even though she was very intelligent, she nevertheless surprised her parents when she declared one day: "The sermon was better than usual, but it was long all the same"!! Cry-rooms are not bad in themselves, but alas, too often parents use them as nurseries. It is certainly easier to let your little ones cry, play and eat in the cry-room than to discipline them and teach them how to behave in the House of God. But how many children are drastically retarded in their spiritual growth because up to the age of three, four, or five they have never attended Mass outside of a cry-room, playing, eating, etc... Parents must apply to themselves the words of St. Paul (I Cor. 3:9). They are "God's helpers", and their children are "God's tillage, God's building". God found in Mrs. Martin a faithful collaborator. To be the mother of a Saint was her happiness on earth and it is her glory in Heaven. This happiness and this glory are meant to be yours too, if you cooperate with God in the work of the sanctification of your children.

[sutrala]

Nightmare of abuse alleged at Christian 'troubled teen' ranches... (First column, 9th story, link) Related stories:'Branded with a cross'...Women tied to goat as punishment...

[urbanchristiannews]

Christian Programs in Wyoming Accused of Abusing Troubled Teens

Christian Programs in Wyoming Accused of Abusing Troubled Teens

After the women from Trinity Teen Solutions were released, they reported the abuses they said they experienced to Wyoming officials and local police, left comments on Yelp and made TikTok videos. Then they joined men from Triangle Cross Ranch in filing a lawsuit.Illustration by NBC News; Trinity Teen Solutions; James Stukenberg and Will Crooks for NBC News For girls who were depressed, drinking,…