From the pen of my son. Daniel. May his words also move you toward forgiveness…

To Mom, we miss you and will always remember you. Thank you for being the kind of woman who taught us the ways of the Lord. You gave to us a chance to live a life not dictated by irrational decisions born of bitterness, desperation, and hopelessness. Matthew couldn’t have put into words how we feel any better. I will always love you and look forward to our reunion in Heaven.

To Andres,

You are seemingly blessed with second chances in life. Today I heard for the first time how my brother intervened on your behalf and gave you yet another chance in life and came to forgive you. Yet one other chance was given to you by a young man who suddenly found himself standing directly behind you at Red Robin one Sunday afternoon several years back. Little to your knowledge, there looming over you, was a man over 6ft tall and weighing 270 lbs, dwarfing you by comparison, watching you act carefree with your companions. Sudden and fierce rage, torrents of righteous anger welled up in this man. His fleshly desires desperately compelled him to reach out in revenge and wrongfully snatch from you what you had taken from his mother: life itself. On that day David, I chose to forgive you and live a life not dictated by bitterness…the kind of life my mother would have wanted for us. So I pray for you, that maybe one day you too will have the chance to walk with the Lord in Heaven and on Earth.

March 14th, Pi day, bad anniversary day… Forgiveness day