everyday angels

First of all, I don't think angels have wings.  It's a fun concept, but it doesn't sit right with me.

I don't know much about religious theology.  I can't list all the angels from the scriptures. I could tell you a few. And of those few,  I could probably only tell you a little about them.

I have never personally had an encounter with a heavenly angel.  I can't say I even know someone who has.

Here's the thing. I don't think angels come with wings and halos. I think they show up with a hot meal after you have a baby.  They come over and help you move. They call you up to tell you a joke when they know times are tough.

What's the nicest thing someone has done for you?

I'll tell you mine. Once when we were poor and down and out, someone gave the Sugar Daddy and I a truck.  We really needed another vehicle and it made all the difference.  She just put the keys in my hand and said, "It's yours."

What's the nicest thing you have done for someone else?

On the day my great-grandmother died, she awoke early and went out into her garden. Friends came by to pick cherries from her trees.  She and my grandpa then went to deliver strawberries to their children.  They visited. I'm sure they played with the grandkids.  It was a warm day and when they returned home my grandmother said she was going to sit by the cooler for a while before she came to bed. She died instantly. Right where she sat.

My great-grandmother was beloved.  I didn't know her. She died a year before I was born, but I am told she was a constant everyday angel in people's lives.

If I ever do encounter a heavenly angel, I hope it is her. And I hope she brings me some berries from her garden.

And I really hope to become the kind of woman she was.