Whispers

Do you ever hear your Guardian Angel whisper to you? I think it is a beautiful thing. In the past year, I have had two definitive situations where I am sure my Guardian Angel whispered to me about things going on around or near me.

Right before I delivered Felicity, I went to town for a grocery trip and left Lowell and Faith at home. When I got to Walmart, I scooped up my list and my purse, and headed inside while plotting out my shopping strategy. (Start in the back and move up, start in the front and work back looping around the dairy, sandwhich supplies, and meat….?) When I got inside and grabbed my cart, I randomly got this feeling of my purse being stolen. It struck me as odd because I was basically all alone and hadn’t seen anybody suspicious looking on my waddling-journey in. But, this feeling nagged, so I looped my straps on my hands and plopped my purse in the little kiddie seat. Then, every time I wanted to step away from my cart, I had to bring it with me because this “purse napping” thing wasn’t going away. When I was just about half way through my list, most of the way through the whole trip and general, I heard a woman talking in a loud voice. She was across the store from me in the baby aisle, her cart parked while she grabbed a box of diapers. She had a little baby in a carseat in the kiddie seat, and a 3 or 4 year old as well. She was freaking out. “My purse! My purse! It was right here! Honey, did you move mommy’s purse? Where is it? It was right here!” Then she frantically started looking in the last few steps she’d been. Now, based on my assessment of how far she had to step from her parked cart to where she grabbed a box of diapers, it was 2 steps and half a turn. She started asking people who were relatively near by her, “Excuse me, do you see a black purse around at all???” Then, she stopped a Walmart Associate as he was walking toward the back of the store and said the most heart saddening thing: “My purse has been stolen! Can you help me? I just pulled $500.00 out of the bank for groceries. Please! I need my purse! Can you help me?” This poor woman. My heart ached for her. An overflowing cart of groceries, a tiny baby and a 3 y/o, all alone, purse gone. What was she going to do? Unfortunately, I wasn’t in a position that I could help her out with a little bit of money, but I looked through my cart and my list to see what things we could do without so I would have that extra bit, but being the hard core planner that I am, I only had the bare necessities for our little family. But, I remembered my “feeling” and wondered, “Would that have been me had I not listened?”

Yesterday, as Mass was ending, there began sirens, lots and lots of loud sirens, somewhere close. I didn’t really think much of it other than the fact that it seemed like there were alot.We had our final blessing, knelt and said our extra prayers, and headed out on our way. We sat in the van for a few minutes feeding the girls some sandwiches before we headed out for our 40 minute drive home. Well, as we were getting on the little freeway, we spotted up ahead where ALL those “sirens” had gone: not 2 minutes from where we were at Church. As we were merging on the freeway, others were merging into our lane as well due to the blocked off third and most of second lanes. As we passed what we’d guessed an accident scene, I was traumatized to see the results: A motorcyclist had been [apparently] thrown from his bike and was killed. His motorcycle was 100 yards ahead of the whole scene and on the other side of freeway, and there was a minivan involved on our side, and there appeared to be another car involved on the oncoming traffic side. All we could figure is that this person was thrown from his bike, how or why?, we don’t know, but we were devastated to see it. As we passed this scene, I immediately remembered what happened at Mass just minutes before… as I was walking up to receive Holy Communion, I was saying my prayers and started talking to Jesus about what I wanted to offer these graces for. I started to think I would offer It in thanksgiving, but I suddenly felt like there was somebody out there who really needed prayers. So, I offered my Holy Communion up for that person who really needs prayers at that moment. Was that person this motorcyclist? The timing of it all seemed very appropriate, it gave me the chills. True, I will not know for sure who received the graces from that Holy Communion. But, maybe some day, in Heaven, somebody will come to me wearing a motorcycle helmet and I will know then.

So, make sure you’re always listening because you never know when you’re going to be needed or to be made aware of your surroundings.