My Hero

I cried today before we even went inside the room.

Because you should have been there. You were one of the first to speak up. It took so much bravery. You were the one who tied it all together. You helped give your friends strength. You fought for yourself. For your friends. For the younger ones. You went to every hearing you could around school and then later work. For three years, everyone fought to get to this moment.

His side kept coming up with excuse after excuse after excuse. “His constitutional rights”. What about your rights? What about their rights? What about what was taken from you? From all of the others as well? How did the system keep determining that HIS rights superseded everyone else’s? Children. Young men. Struggling. Through childhood and adolescence. School. Trying to maintain relationships. Trying to become adjusted adults.

But yes. Let’s keep worrying about HIS rights again and again and again. For THREE years over and over and over. Because of that, it wasn’t in time for you. You were there just one day before you were taken from me as his side argued again for more time. As if they hadn’t had enough? As if he hadn’t taken enough? But yet they gave him even more. I had to tell you that he was granted that time. The next day…you were gone. Taken from me. Taken from all of us.

I am so sorry that you weren’t here for this. I am so sorry that you weren’t here to get your justice. We fought for you. We did it for you. Everyone did it for you. Almost everyone there today was either wearing purple, one of your bracelets, or your memorial ride shirt. Even Lacee was wearing a purple shirt.

I look at this photo and I see how happy you were. Those gorgeous eyes. That smile. Those dimples. It kills me to know that it is that little boy that you were protecting. Because you weren’t just protecting others. You were protecting the little boy within you too.

You have always been my sweet boy. And now you’re my hero too.