Hope Over Hate - My Guest, Mr. Jaylon Smith.
“Defining moments are never determined by those things that happen to us, but rather, what we do next.”
In this week’s conversation, my guest is 17 year old Jaylon Smith and he shares how growing up without his mother and father in his life he found himself lashing out and feeling angry at the world. At the age of one, Jaylon was sent to live with his uncle and aunt down in the small town of Byhalia, MS. Jaylon explains how his uncle and aunt provided for him growing up and eventually moved to Horn Lake, MS, to be closer to other family and his school of choice.
Jaylon states that even though his uncle and aunt showed him love and provided for him he always felt a void in his life not having a relationship with his mom and dad. He describes how his mother was in an abusive relationship with his father and knew that raising her son in that environment would be worse for Jaylon. Jaylon’s father was an active member of the Memphis gang, the Bloods, and Jaylon tells how his visits to his father exposed him to drugs, prostitutes and other violent gang activity before the age of 10. By the time he reached his early teens Jaylon was full of hate and would fight anyone at any time. This behavior kept him in trouble and it wasn’t until a school counselor intervened just before a fight at the school and encouraged Jaylon to take a different path. It was then that Jaylon felt like for the first time in his life that maybe his life actually meant something.
As he continued to be mentored by his new friend, the counselor, Jaylon was then introduced to who God was. Through football, his new counselor friend and the church Jaylon started to make better choices and change the trajectory in his life. This new found hope all nearly came to an end on a Christmas evening at the age of 16 when his father showed up at the house and started causing problems with the family. Jaylon grabbed a gun and intended to protect is family but at that moment he received a call from his preacher and one could make the connection that was nothing less than divine intervention. You DO NOT want to miss this episode!
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This episode was recorded at SRP Studios and Produced by Shelby Row Productions LLC
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Thanks For Watching My Video : Hope Over Hate with Jaylon Smith