A Higher Power
It
was a Thursday night, and I had started my routine house cleaning. The TV was
playing in the background as I started to vacuum. As I passed by the TV the man
on the screen caught my eye, it was Richard Thomas, John-boy to me. I had loved
the Walton's as a child, always dreaming of the perfect family. However, it was
not the Walton's, and as I stood and watched for a few moments, it was a show
that he hosts called Miracles. Little did I know I had just begun to experience
a miracle myself.
I
continued to vacuum during commercials seeing part of the program as I would jut
by. Until it caught my attention that a little girl had recently lost her Father
and did not get the chance to say goodbye. Well as you are aware, I had recently
lost a very important person in my life. The little girl was not eating and was
having a very difficult time with the loss.
The
little girls Mother tried to think of a way to give the little girl closure, a
way to say goodbye, to her very loved Father. Her Mother decided to have the
little girl write a letter and they would take it to her Father's resting place.
However when they returned to the cemetery the little girl noticed her letter
still in the same place that she had left it. She could not understand why her
Father had not taken it and was more devastated than ever.
Her
Mother, distraught, decided to have the little girl write another letter and
attach it to a helium balloon and send it off to her Father. The little girl
picked out a Little Mermaid balloon and her Mother executed the plan. The little
girl seemed content as the balloon floated up into the clouds.
Weeks
later a man was hunting States away. He noticed the shiny balloon sparkling in
the distance. When he read the letter attached, he could not believe the words.
This balloon had drifted thousands of miles, yet he found it still fully
inflated with the heart of a little girl still attached.
The
man felt a tug at his heart and a need to respond to the little girl. He
untangled the balloon and headed for home. He discussed responding to the little
girl, with his wife. The man's wife had reservations about responding to the
little girl. They tucked the balloon away, yet the words of the little girl
still weighed on the woman's heart. She recalled in the letter that the little
girl's birthday was coming up. She sat down and decided they did need to respond
to the little girl with the broken heart. However they responded as a friend,
and not as the little girls Father.
They
sent the letter and included a Little Mermaid book that explains loss on a
little person's level.
When
the little girl received the package, she was thrilled. She had NO doubt that
her Father had received her letter. The Families met and are still today, great
friends. This is a true story.
As
the show came to a close, I thought it was a sweet story, however I could still
feel the pain within my own heart.
The
following Thursday I found myself as down as I had felt. It was a week before
payday, and although I was doing fine, I was feeling the financial clutch, not
to mention the loss itself. My sister had decided to stay with me that night to
try and cheer me.
The
next morning we dressed and pilled in the Jeep for our haul in. I had really
wanted coffee, however was out until payday. I shrugged it off, and thought I
could grab some in the clinic. I just hate needing anything from anyone. This
trial has forced me to address that about myself.
As
we got to the end of my long driveway, something in the ditch caught my eye. As
I stopped and got out, it was a crumbled up dollar bill. There was my coffee! My
heart felt warm, as I looked to the sky. My sister could not believe it as I had
told her about my feelings regarding the coffee.
We
turned down the next two roads and I could not believe what I saw in the sky
floating across the road in the middle of
I
came in work that Thursday feeling so blessed and loved and that I could go on.
Throughout the day I found myself in awe, first the dollar bill, then the
balloon. As the day came to an end, I walked towards the garage and then down
the stairs as I always do. As I walked through the garage, I could not help but
still feel in awe of what I had been allowed to experience. At that moment, yes,
at that moment again something caught the corner of my eye. As I glanced above
my head, on the ceiling of the garage, was a fully inflated Red Heart helium
balloon! I must say, at this point I was scared. I looked around and did not see
anyone else in sight. I sat down my bag, and jumped for the balloon. On the
third try I got it.
As
I rode home with the balloon I felt a love that I have never felt. The balloon
is tied to a chair in my dining room, still inflated. Although I know the
balloon will eventually deflate, I know that my Faith Never will.
As
I reflect back on those weeks I am made aware of how awesome God is. Trust me, I
am hard to impress, and anyone who knows me can attest to that. The fact I
caught the Miracles program that I had never seem prior. The fact the story was
about a helium balloon and saying goodbye for now. The fact that I was troubled
about coffee only to find a crumbled up dollar bill in my ditch. The fact that
in the middle of
For
me, experiencing all of this does not remove all the pain of life's experiences.
What it did do was confirm that God is awesome and that he does love me, and
you. We may not understand his plan, but I truly believe that he does have one.
I also believe he is here with us and not off in the distance. There is a Higher
Power!
God
Bless-