When we lose a loved one to a tragedy, we are devestated. Still, from that tragedy, there is something to be gained.

Kyle Decoteau was gunned down in Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn, New York on July 20, 2011. He was a younger brother to me and a pupil of mine from age eight until age fourteen. I tutored him in math, reading and writing.

Kyle was not just a statistic in a police report. He was a real person; a human being, clever, kind and loyal to his family and any one he called a friend. The emotions of those who loved him cannot be explained at this trying time.

I know well what his family and friends are going through, having lost my younger biological brother Randy Eugene Miller. He died in Harlem New York, October 1, 1996-- also gunned down in cold blood.

I spiraled into a rage of illogical thinking fueled by vengeance. I sought what I thought would be justice at the time-- to find the killer and execute her myself. But God intervened. Depression found its home in me for a long while, but time allowed for God’s intervention in my life. Time does not heal all wounds, but God does.

My brother’s death made me reflect on my own life. And in that reflection, I found a whole new appreciation for living. In time, I encountered people who faced the death of loved ones just as I had faced years ago. With the number of young black men dying at alarming rates, I know it’s my responsibility to give to you what has been given unto me.

Promoting Peace can preserve lives. Untimely tragedies can bring about a replenished respect for human life. All of these things I have grown to understand and live my life teaching others. I utilize my two gifts from God: my ability to paint and my writing, which allows for me to be even more transparent.

My creative abilities are driven by my understanding and acceptance to teach unity by living that example in my life. I anger at times just as every one does, but I don’t take action on my bad thoughts. Prayer has opened doors for me to receive the things not what I want but what I need.

I live my life praying for change in others and myself every day. Mourn for a while, but find your comfort in God. He has all of the answers some for which we are not yet groomed to bare. He knows the right season for which a precious fruit of closure is ripe enough for us to digest.

I pray we all are blessed enough to grow and understand the things of this earth that bring us pain should be given unto God, Our Father. He has the final say-so in our lives and the power to deliver us all to him whole.

Remember: Peace, is a spiritual rest from within us, an unexplainable feeling far from our own conscious understanding that conquers the very circumstances which cause us to treat one another unkindly.

Kurtis L. Miller
Kurtismiller14@gmail.com