A friend came over for lunch in early 1997.  He was in his mid-sixties and we were discussing the bar he once owned in North Hollywood, California.  He told me about some of the famous movie stars that would frequent his establishment: Spencer Tracy, Victor Mature, Rita Hayworth, and so on.

My phone rang during this delightful trip down memory lane, so I excused myself to answer it in my office.  As I was speaking on the phone, I had to open a file drawer to obtain a document and came across a picture of my grandparents' old home in Santa Monica, California.  I finished the call and brought out the picture, not so much to show my friend but to tell him about my grandmother, Mable Edwards, who had been a Hollywood tutor.  She would go to the actual movie sets and teach the young Hollywood actors and actresses.  (I never talk to anyone about my grandmother, let alone her occupation.  After all, she passed away in the late 1960s and had rarely entered my thoughts.)

This sparked my friend's interest.  He asked me who some of her favorite students were.  I said that, whenever she talked about her teaching career, she would always mention that she had a favorite student.  This was Mary Elinor Donahue.  My friend had no problem remembering who Mary Elinor Donahue was.  She played Betty on the TV series Father Knows Best, a situation comedy that aired from 1954 until 1962.  The actors in the show were Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Billy Gray, Lauren Chapin and others.  Thanks to my friend, I now knew more about the show than I ever had.

As we wound down the conversation and began to part company, he asked me if I knew what ever happened to Ms. Donahue.  I told him that I had no idea, and was not even sure if she was still alive.  That ended our conversation.

That same day, during the evening, I turned on my TV set.  The picture came alive and there, to my amazement, was Mary Elinor Donahue standing behind a lectern, talking.  The volume was turned all the way down, so I could not hear what she was saying.  I must admit, my mind was a bit agog with the fact that I was seeing her at all.

I then moved to turn up the volume.  As I did, this is exactly what I heard come out of her mouth: "The teacher that had the most impact on my life was Mable Edwards," and she began talking about my grandmother.  I could have been knocked over with a feather duster!  I just stood there, my heart racing and my mind swimming.  What are the chances?  The odds must be astronomical.

The very next day, while I was at work, my co-worker asked me out of the blue if I believed in angels.  I said,  "Huh?  You mean wings and halos?"  She said, "Whatever.  Do you believe in angels, messengers from God?"  I told her that I did not know, never having remembered ever seeing one.

Just as I said that, a young man came into our place of business and began telling us about some contest that McDonald's (a restaurant chain) was conducting.  The contest had a grand prize of one million dollars.  In order to win it, one had to collect all the necessary puzzle pieces. He then went on to say that someone in Texas had collected every puzzle piece and then put them in an envelope and mailed it to a children's hospital.  (I think it was in New York.)   Someone who could have become a millionaire gave away the entire fortune to help children.  Then the young man looked right at me and said, "Not only did they give up a million dollars, they sent it anonymously.  No one knows who the philanthropist is.  Now, TELL ME THERE AREN'T ANGELS."  He then proceeded to walk out of the store.  He never asked to purchase anything or do anything other than to tell us that story.

My co-worker and I just looked at each other, dumbfounded.  There was very little discussion after that, just a lot of quiet reflection.

My understanding at this juncture is that God knows us better than we know ourselves, and we are all gently being awakened to greater understandings.  I think that God does not want to startle us out of our sound sleep -- we are constantly being gently nudged awake.  This is the concept of free will, which I translate as unconditional love.

Scott Edwards
Used by permission