No one would ever blame the families of the University of Idaho murder victims if they hated Bryan Kohberger forever. This man stalked the four young students, broke into their home, and brutally stabbed them to death. They had bright futures ahead of them, and he took it all away.
These families will never get to see their loved ones again because of what he did. They likely will not get any real closure because he’s too much of a coward to explain himself. He doesn’t deserve an ounce of forgiveness from any of them. And yet, one of the student’s moms is willing to give it to him.
Related: Proof Bryan Kohberger Spoke With His Mom About Idaho Murders!
In an interview with the Spokesman-analysis on Saturday, Cara Northington — the mother of Xana Kernodle — revealed she is forgiving her daughter’s killer today, adding:
“I don’t hate Bryan Kohberger.”
If that’s a shock to you, you’re not alone. We definitely are, too. Xana suffered over 50 stab wounds, most of which were defensive wounds because she fought her killer until the end. This poor young woman was horrifically brutalized as she tried to cut herself.
Her momma does not have any obligation to ever forgive Kohberger after his vicious attack… and yet she is. Why? Cara’s battle with drug addiction for the past 30 years, which included going to jail for a little more than a year after the killings, is a big part of it. She explained that her substance abuse issues, along with non-stop reading of the Bible while behind bars, changed her outlook on life:
“The lord just had me surrender it all. And I did, and I haven’t gone back.”
When it comes to Kohberger, Cara said she is “washing my hands” of him and refuses to let him take up any more space in her mind moving forward. Wow. Instead, she is choosing to remember the good times with her daughter:
“She was funny. She just had a way of making you feel special.”
Cara recalled one instance in which her daughter and friends toilet-papered a house, saying:
“She was always doing wild things like that.”
But her favorite memory, one she’ll cherish forever, is when Xana was 4 years old and saw a sunset:
“Xana said, ‘Mom, look, the clouds are pink,’ and she just took off running.”
What a beautiful moment…
Whether the families of Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, and Madison Mogen will forgive like Cara one day? We’ll see. They have every right not to, though. Everyone grieves and processes trauma differently, and perhaps releasing the resentment toward Kohberger is just what Xana’s mom needed to do to start healing.
What are your thoughts, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments.
[Image via Xana Kernodle/Instagram, MEGA/WENN]
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