No Coincidence

I officially stopped believing in coincidences a long time ago. That said, a very powerful reminder of that happened to me today. There's a long backstory here, be patient...



A few months ago, we came to Atlanta from Athens for my brother's Christmas party. It was around 4:00 as we pulled off the main road and approached my parent's neighborhood when we had to stop behind 3 other cars. A van was in front of us and we couldn't tell what was going on. After the other cars pulled up a bit, we really became confused. There was a little girl (maybe 3?) in the road in her pajamas. I thought she had somehow gotten out of the car up ahead or something. Then it pulled off. I remember thinking to myself, "hey! You can't leave your kid in the street! What the heck is going on??" Then we pull up a little and she jumps right in front of our car with her hand held out for us to stop. Baxter and I looked at each other in amazement as she came around to his window. He rolled it down and she asks us, "'who are you?" We told her our names, asked her if she lived around here, and she replied, "yes." We pulled up onto another street and I got out of my car and walked over. As I was doing so, another car came through and left - that's FOUR PEOPLE who didn't stop to help a small child get off of a busy street!!!

I walked up to her and again asked her if she lived (pointing) right over there? She said that she did and I asked her if her mom and dad were home. She said something in toddler-talk that I couldn't understand and I then asked if I could meet her mom or dad. She took me by the hand and guided me to the front door of her house where the door was cracked open. The whole time, I'm thinking to myself, "these people probably have no idea she slipped out and they are going to be so shocked and thankful that I got her back home safe!" Then she opens the door wide and I see a woman lying on the livingroom floor. A big part of me thought that she was dead - or comatose - or hurt - my heart sank. She walked in and started shaking her and saying "mama," and she didn't get up. Finally - movement. Relief! Okay, she's not dead! Yay! She seemed really stupefied, confused and strange. Then I noticed the bad smell in the house and wondered why she would be asleep on the floor in the middle of the afternoon. I told her what her little girl had been doing and that "I just wanted to make sure she was safe." She didn't say a word, just looked at me funny and shut the door in my face. I walked back to the car shaken and confused, recanted the story to Baxter and then to my parents when we arrived.

My mom told me that I had to report it. I didn't want to. Who wants to be the nosy whistle-blower right before Christmas and everything? I hesitated...and then I called the police. I explained it all to them, gave my information, and that was that. He said they would send someone - whatever that means - and I never knew what happened. I did find out some information later that weekend that the mother is a possible drug addict. Heavy, heavy heart.

Today, I went to my parents' house with the kids. As we left the neighborhood, I see the house and I started thinking about all of that again. I had a lot of questions. Where is the little girl? I wonder if her mother is on drugs? Maybe she got help. Maybe they took her away. Maybe they didn't. Maybe I was wrong to call. Maybe I was right.

Strangely enough (I know someone out there will appreciate this one) "Revelation" by Third Day was playing on my radio as I drove down the road and suddenly, in the midst of my mind's wonderings, I thought we needed to postpone our snack and head to Cobb park. I asked the kids and they agreed an impromptu park visit was a great idea. I have never done this before. We went past the turn to our house and headed to the park. As we walked from our car to the playground, I saw one person before I saw anyone else: the mother from that day. I look around through the crowd and there is the little girl! I was astonished! It was like I was so focused on her that somehow my own personal GPS tracked her down!

I took it as a sign - but I wasn't sure what kind of a sign it was. I decided to sit down behind the woman and just watch the kids play. Of course, Abby and Ford start playing with her immediately. They don't remember her but I will never forget her face. She seems happy enough. I start to think to myself that maybe God wanted to show me that she's okay. I hoped that maybe somehow I had made a difference in her life. Maybe I have - I have no way of really knowing. The child's grandmother is there and so is another smaller child, presumably her little sister. I watch and listen. Unfortunately, I think the earlier assessment is correct - I think she is a drug user. I won't go into all of the details here but I'm pretty good at reading between the lines. I don't believe in coincidence. I was the only person who stopped to help. It has bothered me ever since. I was lead to that playground. But why?

1. God is showing me that He is in charge. If he can show me answers so instantly - control my very routine so quickly - then who am I to worry about my own family? He is in control and He is taking care of us.

2. God will use me for his own purposes when He will. As long as I am receptive to being led by Him and always willing to see where I can make a difference, He will continue to use me in any way I am able to be helpful.

3. I can't know everything. For the things that I can't control and the situations that make my heart heavy (especially those times when I don't know the whole story), I need to pray and trust God.

4. I am blessed. I kissed Ford and sat and thought about how blessed I am. Yeah, we may not have much money right now and I feel a little bit tossed by the waves at the moment, but I have everything in the world to be thankful for.

If you read this whole thing, bless your heart! Had to get it all out!

Georgia Memorial

I went to WalMart again yesterday. I hate going there but it's a very difficult place to completely avoid. I needed more allergy medicine for the kids, cat food, a plug for the sink, avocados and basil. Where else am I going to find all of that stuff under one roof? Anyway, this WalMart is a little different than my old one. It sits directly across from the Georgia Memorial Cemetary where my sister Jan is buried. It's just a stone's throw from my house but I don't think about it unless I go through that intersection. Since we moved, I have passed it many times. I passed it on April 7th, the day my sister passed away. I was on the way somewhere and it just dawned on me what day it was. I didn't go but I started thinking about going. After several more passes, I decided to go yesterday. I took the kids with me and they had never been before. There are no flowers there. My mom used to always make sure there were flowers there but lately it has been very difficult for her to go. I don't know the last time she went. Abby was very touched by all that she learned. I explained about her heart condition and that her heart just finally gave out. I told them how little I was when it happened. I also told Abby that Jan would have loved her hot-pink t-shirt with the black guitar on it. She was a rock-n-roll chick and hot-pink was her favorite color. We are going to go back in the next few days with flowers. I hated seeing an empty vase. Abby wants to take daisies. I think Jan would like that. I wish she could have known my kids. I miss my big sister.

So Much More Than A Great Day

Do you ever have those days when you truly feel blessed in ways you weren't expecting? Like God has taken a shine to you and He deserves more than just the standard "Grace" at table? Today was one of those days for me and my family. We were invited to the neighborhood picnic at Durham park. This cute little park for strolling is one block from our new house. At 12:30, we walked up to a gathering that included nearly every family that lives within the Spring Street Village development, as well as a few others. All of them are around our age and most have small children. There were at least four boys Ford's age and two 8 year-old girls who loved Abby. The food was delicious and we made a lot of new friends. We were there for 4 hours! I even knew one neighbor already - she was Mandy's roommate freshman year. Small world, huh? I have never felt so welcomed in any neighborhood before. There is a true sense of community and fellowship here and it is refreshing and encouraging. God is definitely showing us that we belong!

Mi Casa Poquito

Did I spell that right? I took French but, let's face it, everyone knows a little Espanol these days. Well, we're in our house! Moving was much more difficult than we anticipated. We are older and flabbier and lifting stuff is hard. Back when Baxter and I were dating, I broke my foot. While on crutches just a few weeks later, I had to move out of my house. You see, it is difficult to earn a living as a waitress with a broken foot...So, I needed to move to a cheaper place for a while. I packed boxes seated in a chair. I hopped around and organized. Even at 22, I had a lot of stuff. I had to have a lot of help from friends and family to get it all done and it was tough. However, moving with a broken foot at 22 is still not as difficult as moving with two tired feet at 32.

The good news: everything that I wanted to fit in this little house has fit! Our kitchen is unpacked and I made pancakes for breakfast this morning. It is starting to feel like home.

The bad news: we can never buy anything else again!!! We are so tightly packed in here that I am even pondering the addition of a fruit bowl for the table. You know your space is small when you think long and hard about buying one bowl.

The good news: our plumbing is fixed so we can shower here now and the roof is no longer leaking (yes there are two stories there - but I am just too busy to go into all of that)

The bad news: our phone line says it's busy every time it rains.

The good news: I have bought groceries so the kids won't starve. I even bought some microwave popcorn!

The bad news: we don't have a microwave yet...

The good news: we like cozy.

The bad news: we might get tired of cozy pretty fast!

So, I still have to finish putting our bedrooms together and that might take a while. We like the house and we love our new neighbors. In fact, Jared and Anna have already invited us to church with them! How nice is that? I think we'll be very happy here and if it stops raining, that would be even better. Okay, time to go put away toys...