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Transcript

A Note to Nolan: We Want the Truth · R.E.A.L. Talk for REAL L.Y.F.E.

• 0:00
  Welcome to Real Talk for Real Life, where we're realizing everyone is always
• 0:06
  learning and living your whole experience.
• 0:10
  I'm your host, Coach C, and this is a special episode, a note to Nolan.
• 0:17
  Many of us are aware that on July 4th, 2026, in Ocean Springs,
• 0:22
  Mississippi, an 18-year-old young man went to Horn Allen with three of his friends,
• 0:29
  allegedly, and these young men,
• 0:32
  that he traveled with were white young men, and he was a black young man,
• 0:37
  and unfortunately, they came back alive. He did not.
• 0:42
  Sometimes, there are moments that stop us in our tracks, moments that don't
• 0:47
  belong to one family, one city, or even one state.
• 0:52
  They become moments that remind us just how precious life is and how deeply connected we all are.
• 1:00
  This is one of those moments.
• 1:03
  Nolan, I'm sorry. I'm sorry your life appears to have been cut so incredibly short.
• 1:09
  I'm sorry your family has had to experience every parent's greatest nightmare,
• 1:14
  I'm sorry that what should have
• 1:16
  been memories of your future has become conversations about your funeral.
• 1:21
  That should never be the order of life. From everything we've seen and heard,
• 1:26
  your journey was filled with joy.
• 1:28
  You smiled. You loved. You embraced people. You seem to have the kind of heart
• 1:34
  that believe the best in others.
• 1:36
  The kind of heart this world desperately needs more of.
• 1:40
  Nolan, we're angry. Not because we have all the answers. We're angry because we don't.
• 1:46
  We're frustrated because questions remain. We're grieving alongside people we've
• 1:51
  never met because compassion doesn't require an invitation.
• 1:56
  We simply want the truth.
• 1:58
  Nothing more, nothing less.
• 2:01
  Nolan, we're doing our best to practice peace while demanding accountability.
• 2:06
  Because peaceful people still deserve honest answers.
• 2:10
  Calm voices still deserve to be heard. justice and peace have never been enemies.
• 2:16
  They've always walked hand in hand.
• 2:19
  Nolan, some people will hear conversations about race and immediately become uncomfortable.
• 2:26
  This isn't about playing a race card. It's about acknowledging the cards history has dealt.
• 2:32
  Mississippi carries a painful history that cannot be erased simply because time has passed.
• 2:39
  The story of Emmett still echoes across generations.
• 2:43
  History teaches us why families ask hard questions.
• 2:48
  History explains why communities sometimes struggle to simply wait.
• 2:54
  History reminds us that transparency builds trust.
• 2:57
  And when transparency feels delayed, questions naturally grow louder.
• 3:03
  Nolan, my heart aches for your mother, your father, your siblings,
• 3:08
  your grandparents, your cousins, your friends,
• 3:12
  every empty chair, every quiet room, every birthday that will never feel the
• 3:18
  same, every holiday that will forever have a missing piece.
• 3:22
  Grief changes the temperature of an entire family.
• 3:26
  Nolan, this one hits me differently because I have two black sons,
• 3:32
  young men who resemble you, young men with dreams, young men who laugh,
• 3:37
  young men who still have their whole lives ahead of them.
• 3:41
  As a mother, I cannot imagine receiving the phone call your parents received.
• 3:47
  I cannot imagine standing where they have stood. I cannot imagine trying to
• 3:53
  breathe through this kind of pain.
• 3:55
  And because I'm a mother, I can't help but hurt with them.
• 4:00
  Nolan, if this tragedy was the result of an accident, then tell us.
• 4:05
  If mistakes were made, tell us.
• 4:08
  If procedures were followed, show us.
• 4:11
  If people have information, let it come to light.
• 4:15
  Because truth never fears investigation. Truth stands. Truth remains.
• 4:22
  Truth has nothing to hide.
• 4:25
  Families deserve clarity. Communities deserve confidence.
• 4:30
  And your life deserves a complete accounting.
• 4:34
  Nolan, your mother shared that you have one of the biggest hearts.
• 4:38
  She said she had conversations with you because she knew the world wasn't always as kind as you were.
• 4:44
  Imagine that, a parent having to teach their child that not everyone carries the same heart.
• 4:52
  That innocence has to be protected because not everyone values it.
• 4:57
  That breaks me, but it also tells me something about you.
• 5:02
  You loved first. You trusted deeply.
• 5:05
  You lived openly. Don't ever let this world convince us that those are weaknesses. They are strengths.
• 5:13
  Nolan, as your family prepares to lay you to rest today, my prayer is simple.
• 5:19
  May peace find them in the middle of unimaginable pain. May strength arrive
• 5:24
  every morning they don't think they can get out of bed.
• 5:27
  May comfort surround them in the silence. May justice move without fear or favor.
• 5:34
  May truth be revealed in its fullness. And may your life never be reduced to headlines.
• 5:41
  May it instead become a reminder to love deeper, to hug tighter,
• 5:46
  to value every conversation, to never assume tomorrow has been promised.
• 5:52
  Nolan, we didn't know you personally, but somehow your story reached our hearts.
• 5:58
  Your life mattered, your name matters, and your family matters.
• 6:03
  We stand with every family seeking truth.
• 6:05
  We stand with every community praying for justice.
• 6:09
  And today, we simply wanted to leave a note to Nolan.
• 6:14
  Rest peacefully, young king. Your story is not forgotten.
• 6:19
  For real, sometimes the greatest act of love isn't pretending to have all the answers.
• 6:25
  Sometimes it's refusing to stop asking for the truth.
• 6:30
  Here's your fearless homework, guys. Today, hug someone a little longer.
• 6:35
  Tell someone you love them before the day ends. Pray for the Wills family.
• 6:40
  Pray for everyone working to uncover the truth.
• 6:44
  And remember this, justice isn't driven by volume.
• 6:48
  Is sustained by perseverance. Keep showing up.
• 6:52
  Keep loving. Keep believing that truth has a way of finding daylight.
• 6:57
  Until next time, live fearless. Keep learning. Keep living.
• 7:02
  This is Real Talk, where we're realizing everyone is always learning and living your full experience.
• 7:11
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• 7:16
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• 7:23
  This is Coach C. I'll see you in the next one.