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After a lung disease reduced him to nothing, he decided to become a weightlifter.

Jaed Wells of Utica, New York, always wanted to be a professional bodybuilder, but cystic fibrosis held him back from his dream.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) causes a thick buildup of mucus in the lungs, pancreas and other organs. The infections and lung damage caused by disease reduce a person’s life expectancy to just 40 years.

About five years ago, at the age of 16, Jared’s health began to fail.

“For some reason, when I was doing my medications nothing was healing right. I just kept getting sicker and sicker,” he told WKTV.

“I got really close a couple of times that I was not even sure I was going to bounce back and after that it seemed really tough to get out of it but eventually I made my way though and I'm here now," he added.

At 21, his health began to improve and he was released from the hospital. But the years of battling CF had taken a toll on his body. Jared was was frail and had little muscle tone.

Hoping to get back into shape, last March, he began working out the Body Alive gym in Utica with his best friend, Vinny Donnelly.

Vinny’s father, Bob Donnelly, is the owner of the gym.  

He warned the community of bodybuilders not to make any “wise cracks” about Jared’s slight frame.

This is my son's friend Jarod.Before I hear any wise cracks. Jared has been fighting lung cancer and we almost lost...

Posted by Body Alive on Saturday, March 17, 2018

A few days after Jared started hitting the gym, Bob Donnelly posted an inspiring photo of Jared working his eight-inch biceps on Facebook.

The inspiring photo of Wells fighting back after years of struggle quickly went viral, earning over 19,000 shares.

“We expected it to get the maybe 200 likes that the page usually gets, then all of a sudden it was getting thousands," Wells told NBC News. “It’s kind of exciting, and it's all been really positive.”

Bob Donnelly kept the Body Alive community updated with posts of Jared’s progress.

Jared’s unwavering desire to get fit in spite of living with a terminal disease was an inspiration to many. The support he received from the Body Alive community and social media allowed him to push himself even further.

Vinny Donnelly started a GoFundme page to help with Jared’s medical bills and supplements.

“Jared has been a close family friend for years,” Vinny wrote. “He's strong willed and has been fighting since I've known him. I don't want him to fight alone.  We are going to keep hitting the gym and stay positive.”

By July, Jared gained 35 pounds and was eating 6,000 calories a day.

Here's the most recent photo of Jared from August 22,  just four months after embarking on his journey.

Jared’s story is inspiring on many levels.

Not only did he fight his way back from the brink of death to build a healthy body, but he did so without giving a thought what others in the gym might say. He walked into an intimidating gym filled with muscle-bound weightlifters and pushed his 121-pound body to the absolute limit.

Community

Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

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friendship
Education

In 125 years, millions of people have looked at this painting. No one really saw it until recently.

Van Gogh saw something it took scientists another 100 years to see.

Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Van Gogh’s Starry Night.



Van Gough never got to enjoy his own historic success as an artist (even though we've been able to imagine what that moment might have looked like). But it turns out that those of us who have appreciated his work have been missing out on some critical details for more than 100 years.

I'm not easily impressed, OK?

I know Van Gogh was a genius. If the point of this were "Van Gogh was a mad genius," I would not be sharing this with you.
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Family

Mom shows why painters tape is her 'weird' thing she'll never travel without

For parents with young kids looking to have a little less travel stress this holiday season—this one's for you.

@nicholaknox/Instagram

A mom shows all the ways painters tape can be useful while traveling

Traveling can be stressful for anyone, but it’s particularly challenging for parents with really young kids. The sitting still for long periods of time, the changes in schedule, the abundance of stimuli, the unexpected stomach bugs, the suddenly running out of diaper wipes…all the things that make trips triggering for toddlers and therefore chaotic for mom and dad.

And while there might not be a way to completely avoid every travel-induced aggravation (it’s all part of the journey!) there are definitely tips and tricks and tools to make it a bit smoother of a process.

For one mom, a peaceful trip always begins with a roll of painter’s tape.
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hacks
Joy

Woman who lives on a cruise ship shares the hardest part about her perfect life

She's a little afraid to leave her cabin.

via Christine Kesteloo/TikTok and Cagri Gurbuz/Pexels

Christine Kesteloo has one big problem living on a cruise ship.

A lot of folks would love to trade lives with Christine Kesteloo. Her husband is the Chief Engineer on a cruise ship, so she gets to live on the boat pretty much for free as the “wife on board.” For Christine, life is a lot like living on a permanent vacation.

“I live on a cruise ship for half the year with my husband, and it's often as glamorous as it sounds,” she told Insider. “After all, I don't cook, clean, make my bed, do laundry or pay for food.“

Living an all-inclusive lifestyle seems like paradise, but it has some drawbacks. Having access to all-you-can-eat food all day long can really have an effect on one’s waistline. Kesteloo admits that living on a cruise ship takes a lot of self-discipline because the temptation is always right under her nose.

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cruise ships
Pets

Dog mom has the most random phone conversation that adorably captures her dog's attention

This nonsensical conversation has the puppy ready for tacos...now!

HrtWarming|Facebook

Dog mom's random conversation has dog on edge of his seat

Dogs are constantly listening even if we don't know it. Their little ears perk up anytime they hear something suspicious or tilt their heads trying to understand what's being said. Some dog owners avoid saying words like "walk," "ride" or "treat" in front of their dogs because they know it will get the dogs overly excited.

One dog mom decided to test her luck by holding a fake phone conversation while her dog was nearby and it was shared to social media by HrtWarming. The conversation was about as nonsensical as it could get because no one else was on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah, did you get the treats? Well, he specifically wanted peanut butter. Yeah. Peanut butter treats. Yeah because we're going to go for a ride later," She says. "I think we're going to go for a ride and go to daycare. Camp. Yeah."

At this point the dog is pretty invested in the conversation as he keeps tilting his head from side to side but as the random conversation goes on, he gets more excited.

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dog hears phone call
Family

Baby still in diapers is blowing people away with his musical ability at the piano

Young Gavrill seems to intuitively understand music, and the best part is that he does it with such joy.

@GavrillScherbenko/YouTube

Gavrill Scherbenko appears to be a musical prodigy.

Mozart blew people away with his composing abilities at age 5. Franz Liszt played piano professionally for the aristocracy when he was 9. Yo-Yo Ma played cello for President John F. Kennedy at age 7.

Musical prodigies have fascinated people for centuries with their mastery of music at unexpected ages. Most of us have the same questions: How and at what age were their abilities discovered? Is it nature or nurture or a combination of both? Can prodigies be created on purpose, or is it something no one can predict or control?

While each musical prodigy has their own unique story, one family is giving the world some early glimpses of what an innate sense for music looks like in a baby who's still in diapers.

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music
Family

Woman nearly loses friend after admitting her baby names are 'godawful' and dangerous

Was it right to lose a friendship over it?

via Liza Summer/Pexels

Is it always best to be honest with friends?

A big parenting trend over the past few decades is people giving their children names that help them stand out instead of fit in. Social scientists say that a big reason for the change in America is the rise of individualism.

“As American culture has become more individualistic, parents have favored giving children names that help them stand out—and that means more unique names and fewer common names,” Jean Twenge, a San Diego State University psychology professor, told the BBC.

However, being an individualist comes with some risks. One can be an iconoclastic trendsetter or seen as desperate, inauthentic and cringeworthy.

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baby names
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