A little reminder of
how we can change or affect someone's life, if only for
a moment.
This was
written by a physician who works in a Hospice of Metro
Denver.
I just
had one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and
wanted to share it with my family and dearest friends:
I was driving home from a meeting this evening about 5,
stuck in traffic on Colorado Blvd., and the car started
to choke and splutter and die - I barely managed to
coast, cursing, into a gas station, glad only that I
would not be blocking traffic and would have a somewhat
warm spot to wait for the tow truck. It wouldn't even
turn over. Before I could make the call, I saw a woman
walking out of the "quickie mart" building, and it
looked like she slipped on some ice and fell into a gas
pump, so I got out to see if she was okay. When I got
there, it looked more like she had been overcome by sobs
than that she had fallen; she was a young woman who
looked really haggard with dark circles under her eyes.
She dropped something as I helped her up, and I
picked it up to give it to her. It was a nickel. At
that moment, everything came into focus for me: the
crying woman, the ancient Suburban crammed full of stuff
with 3 kids in the back (one in a car seat), and
the gas pump
reading $4.95.
I asked her if
she was okay and if she needed help, and she just
kept saying "I don't want my kids to see me
crying," so we stood on the other side of the pump from
her car. She said she was
driving to
California and that things were very hard for her right
now.
So I
asked, "And you were praying?" That made her back away
from me a little but I assured her I was not a crazy
person and said, "He heard you, and He sent me." I took
out my card and swiped it through the card reader on the
pump so she could fill up her car completely, and while
it was fueling walked to the next door McDonald's
and bought two big bags of food, some gift certificates
for more, and a big cup of coffee. She gave the food to
the kids in the car who attacked it like wolves, and we
stood by the pump eating fries and talking a little. She
told me her name, and that she
lived in
Kansas City. Her boyfriend left two months ago and she
had not been able to make ends meet. She knew she
wouldn't have money to pay rent Jan 1, and finally, in
desperation, had finally called her parents with whom
she had not spoken in about 5 years. They lived in
California and said she could come live with them and
try to get on her feet there. So she packed up
everything she owned in the car. She told the kids they
were going to California for Christmas, but not that
they
were going to live
there.
I gave her my
gloves, a little hug and said a quick prayer with her
for safety on the road. As I was walking over to my car,
she said, "So, are you like an angel or something?"
This definitely made me
cry. I said,
"Sweetie, at this time of year angels are really busy,
so sometimes God uses regular
people." It
was so incredible to be a part of someone else's
miracle. And, of course, you guessed it, when I got in
my car it started right away and got me home with no
problem. I'll put it in the shop
tomorrow to
check, but I suspect the mechanic won't find anything
wrong.
Sometimes
the angels fly close enough to you that you can hear the
flutter of their wings...
Psalms
55:22: "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall
sustain thee He shall never suffer
the
righteous to be moved."
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