What does forgiveness mean to you? This question has been posed to me countless times since 2014, when my father and son were murdered due to one person’s hatred of Jews. You can hear and read my story, Healing a Shattered Soul, to find my answer.
This same question passed my lips as I interviewed Chris Singleton, a former professional baseball player, author, inspirational speaker, husband, father and a son that ANY mother would want for themselves. Sharonda Coleman - Singleton lost her life to gun violence in the hate crime that took the lives of 9 African Americans while they were praying during Bible study on June 17, 2015, inside their Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. While Chris tells me that he uses the name of the murderer who took his mother’s life, I am not yet ready to give him a mention.
Important in our conversation, you will hear Chris answer my question about forgiveness, why he specifically humanizes the murderer by using his name and how precious his mother’s memory is to him. She taught her children about faith. “Faith is like a blanket, a hug and a kiss on the cheek”, Chris shares.
Celebrate the good!
Chris explains to us the necessity of sitting in the sorrow and pain of great loss, processing this to our best ability and then stepping into creating happiness and celebrating the good.
In 2015, an ESPN E60 program highlighting Chris speaking at a vigil held for his mother, on his college baseball field, drew the attention of my close friend, Dominic DeCicco. Dom was quick to let me know that somehow Chris was speaking about his mother in the same way I spoke about Dad and Reat only hours after their murders. This program led me to a conversation with Chris’ then college baseball coach, Stuart Lake, and finally a live conversation with Chris, himself. We’ve connected about 4 times since 2015, but none of these phone calls lasted very long or produced an outcome that kept us in meaningful contact.
Our conversation for this podcast is the first time we have seen one another, albeit virtually. I was emotional and tearful as we began. You see, I lost my son and Chris lost his mom. Chris reminds me of Reat. Chris reminds me of who Reat would be and should have been.
Chris speaks publicly and has authored two books, “Different - A Story About Loving Your Neighbor” and “Your Life Matters”. His work has been recognized by the Obama Foundation as he espouses from every vantage point that “love is stronger than hate”.
If you haven’t yet decided to follow Chris on social media or hire him to present at your school, religious institution or place of business, act now. He is booking into April 2022 as a highly sought after inspirational presenter to humans of all ages. One great anecdote he uses with children is the fact that his loving mother, Sharonda, had a tattoo of an ice cream cone, aka “sexy chocolate”.
Take a listen to Real Grief - Real Healing with Mindy Corporon in episode 46, #Can’t Let Mom’s Down, to hear the full story and celebrate the good.
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