A Simple Prayer

On March 21, a Wednesday, I was in a hurry to get the kids out the door and the baby fed so I could head over to the gym for a swim. I signed up for my first Olympic Triathlon which will be in May and I'm trying to squeeze in as many workouts as I can.

I went to give Evelyn her first bite of breakfast when she folded her arms and bowed her head. I paused and asked her if she wanted to have a prayer? She folded her arms again. So I offered a prayer. It was just the two of us but I prayed for each member of the family and then asked for a special blessing that we might travel safely. Evelyn ate her breakfast and we headed out the door.

I was almost to the gym when I realized my car was making a really funny sound and driving rough. I thought maybe I had a flat tire so I pulled into the mall parking lot to take a look. My front left tire was completely flat! I called Ryan and he said he would come help me change it. I didn't want to waste his time so I got started getting out the jack and setting up the car. I couldn't for the life of me get the bolts off the wheel, though. Just then a young man stopped and asked if he could help. I told him my husband was on his way but I would take all the help I could get. He managed to get most of the bolts off by the time Ryan got there and the two of them finished the job really quick.

After we put the flat in the back of the van Ryan looked it over to see if he could find the hole. We assumed it was a puncture since it had gone flat so suddenly but as we looked at it we saw a long crack along the sidewall. He said he was glad I hadn't been on the freeway when the tire went flat.

I didn't think much about his comment until I was back on my way to the gym. I thought about how bad it could have been if I had that flat on the freeway.  With all the construction there are no shoulders and it could have turned into a really bad accident. Then I remembered the prayer I had with Evelyn that morning. I was shocked and incredibly humbled. The only reason we had that prayer was because she had folded her arms to pray. She is a very wonderful little girl.