Sometimes to get to the next level in life we have to look back on how God has blessed us thru our times of trial!
So I look back with gratitude for many things in Marc’s case –
The incident happened in a city where I felt welcomed. The best Detectives solved the crime so swiftly …. & the attorneys’ in the case were caring, ethical individuals. I’m grateful for the Newspaper and TV reporters who so creatively reported on the case at certain junctures. Then, to top it off …. the defendants are young men I can relate to, not cruel monsters like I’d feared!
I guess since the incident was such a terrible misunderstanding …. a true tragedy for all parties …. there was no yelling in court, no angry lawyers, no irate judge. No family or supporters being rowdy, making things more difficult. I believe we all felt more sad than mad.
Some parents have murdered sons who were involved with drugs, gangs …. or living a ‘double life’. Some sons murders can’t be solved due to gang codes of honor. Some families live in fear or hatred of their offenders, one of my friends can’t face her offender yet. I know someone whose child’s murder isn’t being investigated due to corruption in the town. I think I have it bad sometimes but others are dealing with almost insufferable daily agony.
Even tho Marc’s case was originally reported as this grisly crime by a few sources, we were so lucky to have the offenders we did. I don’t see how I could have dealt with drug-crazed, arrogant, life long criminals or violent anti-govt Antifa types. I think it would have destroyed me! Actually one of the first suspects was a ‘sicko’ who ‘threw the lesser defendant Wesley ‘under the bus’, saying Wesley was a guy who looked for weak people to hurt, and got others to do his stabbing for him! I read that. I really felt more traumatized after reading that in some news at the very beginning.
But, we got a gift in the circumstances of the case! I’m very aware that if the case hadn’t have been solved Marc’s legacy would be almost non-existent. I wouldn’t have much to write about in a blog, and there’d be no healing with any defendant. It would have been excruciating for me to wait years for someone to be caught or the defendant to finally be remorseful. I wanted with all my heart and soul to get justice for Marc ASAP, I never thought we wouldn’t get it, crazy as that may seem. So many prayed for justice and healing for all 3 boys …. that was hard for me, but it ended up being one of those God things.
Nothing in life happens in an isolated fashion, everything is woven together.
Most of us compartmentalize life. We see God here, family over there. We see our job or finances in one way and our community as another entity! We often aren’t integrated on the inside or feeling much joy or pain!
Along with this many of us don’t think anything bad will ever happen to us or our children. We assume just because we don’t have serious vices, we obey laws and do good by our kids, we’re safe.
I found out it doesn’t take but a split second to be hit by a stray bullet, a knife swing, someone who’s high on drugs or ignorant of his weapon. It only takes one predator to say one word to a child who’s not prepared for evil, to rouse parents, police and alarm a community once again to violence. It only takes one desperately lonely daughter one night to hook up with some pervert online. One moment can change a family’s entire life!
Violent crime can make us connect the dots in our life. It forces us to go up against our fears, our natural inclination to not consider evil or danger. Most of us want to live safely but we aren’t very equipped to deal with crime …. but we can learn to stand against it. Predators don’t care what race you are, they’re looking for those who are ‘weak’ …. or those who they think won’t defend themselves.
Talk with your loved ones! You may think it’s going in one ear and out the other, but some of it will stick –
Thank you for this truth