pass the Miracle whip

Miracles....what usually comes to mind for many people are the major events, like the parting of the Red Sea by Moses, or a person who conquers a terminal disease or overcomes a chronic ailment in a way that the medical field cannot explain away. Those are all completely real and completely valid, but for people like me, I cannot at the moment, relate to those events. I have discovered that there are miracles all around us every day, whether big or small, if only I take the time to look around and notice. Miracles to me need not be something so big you read about it in the news. To me, miracles can be defined by the notion of divine intervention. If something unexpected and good happens, or something bad is somehow averted, that is divine intervention and therefore miraculous.

Things like my son making the bus when he almost rolls out of bed when it's time to go outside and the bus driver happens to be running late that day...that's a miracle. Sometimes it's me somehow not forgetting to mail all my bills on time and not forgetting any appointments...sometimes, it's me getting to have my shower early enough to walk outside to the bus stop with Alice and NOT have my bathrobe and pj's still on...walking outside or driving in my car and seeing either a rainbow after a rain shower, or fall foliage so stunning it leaves me speechless..that is a miracle. Any time I have had a close call while driving and remained accident free, that is a miracle.

I have also been the recipient of more significant divine interventions this year, though. Went from the brink of divorce to actually looking forward to celebrating our 18th wedding anniversary on Easter Sunday this year. Talk about a great day for a fresh start. We also qualified for the funding to allow us to afford help that is now coming into our house to help us all become a real family for the first time in a significant way. It's early in the process but it has left me with so much hope that things will be better, and they are already changing for the better.

The most recent and very newsworthy miracle is taking place with Matthew. I am sure it has something to do with the help we are getting but I know there is some divine guidance going on, too. He came home from school today and on his own, has been cleaning in his room. If you know anything about my kid, you will know that this is in no way making light of miraculous events...This is truly a miraculous event, considering how hard it is for him to throw anything away of any kind. I am starting to think that maybe God offers a "Miracle of the Month" club that no one told me about and someone in the know gave me a gift membership or something, hahaha. If so, I'll have to make sure I keep renewing it every so often. It is certainly healthier than candy of the month, or junk food of the month, or whatever else one can conjure up.

I don't know what the rest of the year has in store for me but even if I am not granted any more miracles the rest of 2011, I have enough hope and peace inside to carry me through. The miracles of the first part of this year have been pretty great and I am quite thankful for them.