Marvin Jones pens emotional letter about death of baby son and moment daughter asked ‘when is he back from heaven?’
NFL star Marvin Jones has revealed his struggle after the death of his baby son in an emotional letter to his four older children.
The Detroit Lions wide receiver said he was "ready to call it quits" and move out of the country after six-month-old Marlo .
Jones, 30, revealed his anguish in an open letter published on , addressed to his children Marvin, 11, Mareon, nine, Murrell, five, and Mya, four.
He told of the heartbreaking moment Mya asked when her baby brother would "come back from heaven".
But he said the children had brought "an immense amount of joy" to him and wife Jazmyn, helping them through the "unimaginable tragedy".
Jones wrote: "It’s tough to talk about even all these months later, but after your little brother Marlo passed away in December… Daddy was ready to call it quits.
"Not just football, either. I’m talking just get away from … everything.
"Leave the country. Move to Spain. Hunker down. Just us and Mommy. That sort of thing.
"Never talk to anyone ever again, never have to face anyone or discuss anything, just shield us all from the entire outside world.
"We were all just struggling so much.
"Mom and me was one thing, but hearing Mya ask, 'When is Marlo coming back down from heaven?'
"Seeing that teddy bear that you guys called by his name? It was beyond heartbreaking."
He added: "Me and Mommy tried our best to stay strong in front of you guys.
"We knew you’d be watching us — looking to us for how we were handling such an unimaginable tragedy. So we did our best.
"But the reality is.… I was really hurting.
"Early on I’d try to act 'normal' all day and not show any hurt, and then I’d just lie down in bed at night and it’d all come out at once. So, yeah, those first few days, it all just felt like too much."
Jones paid tribute to his friends, teammates and coaches at the Lions who showed up to support the family.
He wrote: "A few days after our little angel left us, as sad as we all were … something truly amazing happened. Something inspiring.
"All of sudden, folks just kept showing up at our front door. And, at first, I gotta be honest ... I didn’t want to answer. But the doorbell just kept ringing.
"All showing us love. Giving us support. Letting us know that they were there for us.
"It changed something inside of me.
"I went from wanting to be closed off and isolated from pretty much everyone to realizing beyond a shadow of a doubt that our family needed all the love and support we could get.
"And as tough as those first few days were, I always want you guys to remember how our family and friends came together to lift us up and help us all get through the most difficult experience of our lives."
He also paid tribute to his children, saying how much he had enjoyed playing with like he was a kid again himself.
Jones wrote: "Even in the hardest of times, you allowed us to see and experience what real, pure love looks like.
"And you guys had us laughing and smiling again.
"At the end of the day, we all made it through together."
Jones signs off by revealing Jazmyn is pregnant, with a baby girl due in February.
Baby Marlo just after Christmas last year.
Jones had shared a heartwarming video of the whole on Christmas morning.
Just two days later he posted again on Instagram with the .
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He said: “It is hard to believe that our little angel, our fighter from day one, our son ‘Marlito’ has unfortunately passed away and is no longer here with us.
“Marlo, the joy that you brought to us everyday, with that smile, and that energy was like heaven on earth.
“You will always be in our hearts. We will always remember you.”
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Jones was seen sobbing on the sidelines as , with his whole family wearing jerseys with the baby’s name on the back.
