Held by the brother i lost

This artwork tells a piece of my story — living with intense emotions, carrying the weight of a brother I lost, and surviving the shadows of small towns where judgement speaks louder than understanding. It shows what people don’t see: the storms inside, the stigma outside, and the quiet ways we learn to survive when life gives us nothing soft to land on. The spirit behind me represents my brother, still watching over me in his own way. The shadows around the town represent the whispers, the assumptions, the labels people throw without knowing the truth. This isn’t a story about “bad choices.” It’s a story about survival, about mental health, about what it means to grow up in places where support was rare but pressure was heavy. If this piece speaks to you, you’re not alone. Healing is messy, survival looks different for everyone, and no one should be judged for the ways they keep themselves alive.