I received a letter this morning regarding your arrest. Although we have never gotten along and I haven’t seen you in quite some time, you are still family and I felt it only right to pass along some knowledge in hopes it will help you understand the world. It seems you have never been given the opportunity to learn this lesson, and I know this is not your fault. Before you crumple this up and disregard this as just another, ‘I told you so’ from your annoying little cousin, please recognize that gloating is my very last intention.
I am unaware of the details of your violation, but whatever the situation I am positive you will find this applicable. I always do.
I am sure you have heard a very different version of this story from your grandma Alexandra, but please keep in mind she experienced a very different side of things.
When I was 8 and Jem was 12 we watched the hearing of a black man falsely accused of rape. We watched our father fight for equality. We watched a crooked man lie and his scared daughter hide. We watched a jury murder justice. And all the while our dad never once looked upon a face with hatred or bitterness. Not once in his whole life had he raised his voice in the battle of justice. This is something I could never understand as a child, and it’s something that inspires me as a judge everyday.
Your great uncle Atticus once told me something that should never be forgotten, and that is this, that you can never really understand