One Last Goodbye R.I.P. “Redd”
Remembering Rachel Rangel a.k.a “Redd”
"Follow peace and a good conscience"
It is roughly 6am and I just had a conversation; my last conversation with a friend that died in a fatal accident the night after Valentines. My dream placed Rachel just a few feet from me on the floor sitting with her knees clutched under her body just asking me questions about God, my life, music, and her aspirations in life. This dream was a mirrored reflection of Rachel when we first hung out. Prior to us hanging out that day she was just a girl that wandered in my church one Wednesday night that I asked to sit next to me through the service to make her feel more comfortable. From this point Rachel would call me with questions about faith in God and the struggle to kick bad habits that she felt conflicted with the truth she knew. Being the person I am, I never sugarcoated to truth to make her feel comfortable with me or her relationship with God. She grew angry with me at times but honored our friendship because she knew I would always tell her what she needed to hear, and not what she just wanted to hear. Something we used to call “real recognizes real.”
We would talk, she’d get mad with something I said not talk to me for a week than text me and we’d start talking again. We related to one another for the fact we were both were born in the hood and struggled through our childhood. I remember her asking how I maintained a relationship with God while being hurt by so many people. Rachel was a very peaceful person, when you were on her good side. She definitely loved God with no questions but struggled to keep conflicting desire from above Him as many do. I remember one conversation we had and Redd was conflicted about doing something she felt was wrong and my answer to her from the Bible was, “follow peace and a good conscience.” A statement my pastor consistently reminds our church of. I told her if it feels wrong and your trying to convince yourself its right than its probably not right . She posted the statement on her Fb and texted it too many over and over, thanking me for saying it.
She loved that statement so much because she was definitely a peaceful person, despite tragedies that have happened in her life. The last time I saw Rachel was New years. I texted her the morning of to see what she had planned and invited her to spend New years with me at my Uncle’s New years party. I emphasized to her he was Jamaican, the food, the music and she agreed to come out. She brought a ton of fireworks which all the kids at the party enjoyed. Then we just chilled, talked and laughed with friends and family until the next morning. When she dropped me off at my car at the church, I never thought that would be the last time I saw her.
We continued to talk over fb and text one another. I got an Android phone and remembered her because she was excited about her droid phone she purchased when we first met. I was going to text her but never got around to it that week, unfortunately that was the week I received news that Rachel died in a fatal car accident. Driving onto an on ramp she swerved off the road and hit a tree in a wooded area. Unable to find her phone that fell under her seat she grabbed her laptop in a daze and went to cross I-4 to a hotel she would be staying in for help. While crossing the interstate she was struck by a total of 5 cars and pronounced dead on site.
I still cannot believe she is dead, and keep grasping for the possibility of just having one more conversation with her, one more text, but I can’t. Filtering through the “what if’s” and wondering if I did enough. The sobriety of this situation has made me realize how vital it is for us to always be real with those around us. If there was one thing Redd would want to be remembered for and a belief she held fast too was, “just keep it real.” Be honest with yourself and the convictions of your heart and don’t attempt to convince yourself otherwise. When you convince yourself something is wrong when you know it isn’t you decieve your own heart and mind. The biggest thing is just be who you say you are without attempting to appeal to someone else’s likes, appeal to God’s pleasure and live free.
I could preach a hundred messages of what God is showing in this tragedy, but I just wanted to reflect back on Redd’s life in hopes to encourage others. You never know when someone will be here one day and gone the next. Are you being the light you were created to be for them? Are you leading them in a path you would go? Are you the same person to them in private as you are in the public view? Are you following peace and a good conscience in your life?
R.I.P ≈REDD
"Follow peace and a good conscience"
