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The following two short stories provide Jonathan and Romano’s insights after meeting with Debby and her good friend, Beth, in a small room off the library at Tomoka Correctional Institution on February 28, 2025. Click here to read (or listen to the audio versions) of the backstory and Beth and Debby’s perspectives of this same day.

An Amazing Day by JonathanUnlimited

February 28, 2025.
Today I experienced the restorative healing of the Holy Spirit.

In a small room with four other men in blue and two volunteers, we prayed for God to move in our hearts and to use this meeting for His glory and His purpose. We had no idea what would happen.

Just being there was a blessing. I thank God that He allowed me to be a part of this group. I am forever changed by having been in the presence of God as His love manifested in each one of us.

From the moment I shook Beth’s hand and introduced myself, I knew something powerful was about to happen. Then with her opening prayer and the telling of her story, I could barely contain my tears. I knew the Holy Spirit was prompting me to speak when Beth talked about her attempt to express her forgiveness to the man who had killed her son. He had rejected that forgiveness just as I had rejected the forgiveness of a victim of my crime.

Trusting Myself

So, I opened my mouth and it was like God used my willingness to share to shatter the stony quietness of my heart. Normally, I would never discuss anything personal with anyone. I am a closed, sealed, and locked book. Painful memories just fester inside, and I expend all my energy to create a facade of joy and peacefulness. I didn’t trust anyone with knowledge of the real me, and I didn’t trust myself to explore those memories without being destroyed by them.

My intention was to give her hope that her son’s killer could become willing to accept her forgiveness in the future of him taking her son’s life. But I think she was dismayed that it took me 20 years to receive such forgiveness from God. But she is also wise enough to know that God works on a timeline none of us can predict.

Healing Power of Stories

I never received a second chance at forgiveness for my crime, although I would now embrace the courage of such a forgiving heart. This meeting made that clear to me. Also, I saw the power of stories (seven different stories) working together in a spirit of openness, bringing healing to each of us.

The healing is not complete, but it has begun. That is the miracle. 

I saw God moving and changing hearts. I saw men opening up to what had been buried for decades; and it was beautiful.

An hour meeting stretched out to two-and-a-half hours, but I didn’t want it to end. Looking into the eyes of my brothers afterward, I knew that the Holy Spirit was not done with the miracles that took root on February 28, 2025. I am still welcoming that Love in the name of complete acceptance and forgiveness.

Thank You, God. Amen.

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Having a Heart by RomanoUnlimited

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“Life is a journey.” 

I don’t know who wrote that, but whomever it was got it right. Kind of. What the statement doesn’t tell you is that life’s journey can abruptly change directions. 

Self-centered

Case in point: I was going through my normal day-to-day routine, woke up in the morning expecting nothing to change. Then life kicked in. My perspective on things shifted. 

I no longer liked the way I treated people. 

I didn’t like the anger I carried. 

I didn’t like who I was anymore. 

In fact, I realized that I didn’t like myself at all. 

I don’t know what prompted this change. Introspective thinking was a completely new experience—one that would change the course of my life.

Other-centered

I went from the self-absorbed, do not care what happens to others, I-must-come-first individual, to a person who started thinking about how I affect others. This led to many changes over a period of years that prompted my continual evolution. Instead of calling home and demanding things like books and money from family, I started to think about the fact that they had bills to pay. I started to ask about their day. I started to listen to their problems and, sometimes, even offered solutions. I started holding the door for others behind me when I entered or exited buildings. I started helping others in their educational pursuits. I even stopped getting in trouble which allowed me to qualify and sign up for an incentivized prison, which ultimately allowed me to meet the mother of a young man whom someone murdered. 

The Heart is More than a Pump

February 28, 2025, I had another one of those abrupt directional changes. Before then, I thought that the heart is just a pump that moves the blood around the body. Now, I know differently. It’s an organ that collects all our experiences and defines who we really are. I did not understand the true meaning of the heart until I met Debby, the Gavel Club’s volunteer. She had the courage to set up an in-person meeting between her friend, Beth, and a few members of the Gavel Club, which included me. Beth is the victim of a violent crime. I’m a convicted and incarcerated felon, with a violent past.

What unfolded was a gift that I will never be able to repay.

Forgiveness

I do not know what Debby said to Beth to convince her to come here, but that day everything changed. Samuel, Beth’s nineteen-year-old son, was murdered. I do not know the depth of Beth’s pain. But what I do know is that instead of seeking retribution and giving into anger, Beth chose to forgive. 

She forgave the man that killed her baby boy. Then she came to this prison to bring hope and love. Both of these women have shown me the true meaning of “having a heart,” to stand up for what you believe and to be so convinced in that belief that it turns into action.

I can only hope to follow in their footsteps…to make amends for what I did by making the world a better place.

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This is the second post in the Project Unlimited series titled: “Forgiveness: Who Do You Think You Are?” Inmates at Tomoka Correctional Institution wrote these stories, not to justify or excuse behaviors, but for the purpose of educating and increasing awareness. You’re welcomed and encouraged to send questions for consideration for the Unlimited men to answer throughout this series. To learn more about Project Unlimited click here.