Picture of an Angel

Golden sunlight danced in the treetops, and children's laughter filled the park. The smell of popcorn played on the breeze, and life seemed good. It was one of the happiest Saturday mornings I had spent with my little daughter, Gigi.

That is, until two strangers threw her into their car and sped away. It seemed like a bad dream. I could barely whisper when the police questioned me. For hours we waited, but there was no word on the whereabouts of the car. Tears would start to come. Then nothing. I was numb with fear.

"Go home, Ma'am," the sergeant said. "I'll have an officer drive you. We'll also want to monitor your telephone. The kidnappers might call, and we'll want to get a trace. Trust me, these guys can't get far." After what had just happened, it was hard for me to trust anything.

My friend Gloria came over that afternoon. "I heard about Gigi on the radio," she said. "Everyone is looking for the car. The interstates are all blocked." She took my hand.

"Look here," Gloria said. "I want you have this picture, and I want you to pray with me."

It was a picture of a little girl sound asleep in her bed. Standing by the bed was a tall, blond angel. His hand was touching the girl's shoulder as he smiled down at her.

My nerves were frazzled. "You know I don't believe in that kind of thing!" I snapped. "I'm too exhausted for any hocus-pocus right now, Gloria! I want my daughter home!" I started to shake, and then I began sobbing.

Gloria placed the photo on our mantle and knelt down beside me. "Just pray with me," she said, holding my hand.

I had no strength left, so we prayed and waited what seemed an eternity. Together, we waited by the phone until sundown. The phone never rang.

Suddenly, the front door swung open. I looked up and screamed.

There stood Gigi. "Gigi! Thank God!" I cried, throwing my arms around her. "Where did those men take you? How did you get home? Did the police find you?"

"No Mommy!" said Gigi. "I was real scared because those men said they were taking me far away. We were going real fast on an old rock road I'd never seen before. But then a tall man walked out in front of the car, and they ran off the road and hit a tree.

Then the tall man ran up and opened the car door and pulled me out. He was real nice, and said I would be okay now, and that those men couldn't hurt me. I must have gone to sleep, because then I woke up here in front of our house. He must have brought me home."

"But who … how did he know … where to bring you?" My voice broke and trailed to a whisper.

"I don't know, Mommy," Gigi said. "But he was real friendly, and I wasn't scared of him at all."

Just then Gigi noticed Gloria's picture on the mantle. "That's him!" She squealed, pointing at the picture. "Mommy, the tall blond man dressed like an angel. That's the man that pulled me out of the car!"

I felt chill-bumps across my neck and arms. Gloria turned pale. "Are you sure that's the man?" Gloria asked.

"Yeah, that's him okay. Except he didn't have wings, and he was wearing blue jeans and a tee shirt. But that's him exactly. I'd remember him anywhere!"

Later that night, the police found the injured kidnappers in their wrecked car fifty miles from our home. When questioned, the driver remembered swerving to avoid hitting a tall blond man. The backseat door that Gigi sat by had been completely torn off its hinges.

Twenty years have gone by. We have never heard from anyone claiming to have rescued Gigi. There have been no logical explanations for Gigi's miraculous escape and return home from a wreck so far away.

There have always been things that people can't explain. But, from that day forward, I've never doubted that many of those things are divine miracles. I believe that all experiences, positive and negative, are given to us for our strengthening and learning.

Gigi now takes her little girl to the park on Saturdays. They enjoy the sunlight as it dances in the treetops, the smell of popcorn, and the laughter of children. She keeps Gloria's picture on her mantle, and she re- members her angelic friend. And, like my daughter, I have a faith that has carried me through many trials since that day many years ago.