Guardian Angel? I have more than one, but this Angel left a scar….

January 3, 2012 by Naphtali 8 Comments

January 3, 2012 and it is cold, even here in the south. 90 degrees is good for me. Many of you may like snow, cold air and ice. Hope you enjoy it for the next few months. I AM READY FOR SPRING!

Thinking how much I enjoy warm and hot summers I will tell you a true  story. It may warm me up just writing about it.

Angels come in many forms. There is no other explanation for what happened to me in the summer after my 5th grade except that an Angel saved my life. For you skeptics out there, I will excuse you right now if you don’t believe in Angels. I do.

Swimming was always my agenda in the summers. I was a fish. We had joined the neighborhood pool club which became my daily hangout. Mom would fill my swim bag with clothes and quarters, drop me off when it opened and pick me up late in the afternoon. Only this particular day she had to come sooner; she was not happy.

It was very hot, and the pool was running over with kids. There were lifeguards in every chair. Some were walking around the pool. My friend, who was also a big swimmer was  over in the 3 foot deep water.

Jumping off the diving board was fun. I loved to dive, do flips and handstands.  There were two diving boards. The lower one and the 12ft one. I was on the lower one and did a back flip. Or so I thought. I went under.

The next thing I remembered was a soft and gentle hand under my arm pulling me up to the top.

I remember feeling safe, peaceful and comforted that someone was helping me. Only no one was there.

Feeling somewhat groggy I thought to myself,

” I must have really hit the water hard because my head hurts.”

A  little dizzy, I got out and sat down. After a quick rest I headed over to the 3 feet water where my friend was. I kept swimming but felt sick and weak. Continuing to swim, I kept going under like I loved to do and swim with my eyes open to see everything. But something was wrong.  I just didn’t feel right.

Getting bumped and bruised by every other swimmer was not helping my dizziness. I felt the top of my head. It felt strange. By now it was throbbing. I called to my friend to look at it. She started screaming to the top of her lungs.

I cried out, “What is wrong?” She replied, “You are cut and blood is everywhere!”

Swimmers were screaming. Lifeguards jumped in and grabbed me. Sitting me in a chair they attached cloths to my head to stop the bleeding. I was terrified and had a very bad headache.

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The pool attendant called my mother. She was recovering from surgery 3 weeks prior to this and was not suppose to drive. She did anyway. Rushing me to the hospital I didn’t know if I should be more upset about my head or my mother.

The ER doctor checked the almost 5″  gash;  did some tests and told us there was no internal damage. Shaving off about 4 inches in  diameter of my hair, he proceeded to stitch my head up with about 15 -20 stitches.

When he finished he asked me what happened. We concluded I had hit the diving board and fell in the water. The doctor asked,

“How long were you under the water?”

“I don’t remember. In fact I don’t remember falling into the water. No one saw me and no one was in the water with me, but I felt a hand reach under my arm pulling me up to the top. That is when I realized I had been on the bottom of the pool and didn’t know how I got there.”

The doctor said it was a miracle that all I needed was stitches. The lifeguards were on full alert after this unbelieving I had survived such a hit with only stitches to show for it.

Me, I was more upset that the doctor ordered me out of the  pool for at least 2 weeks until he took the stitches out.

I remember that day like it was yesterday.

All I have to do is glide my fingers across the top of my head  and feel the scraggly scar left behind from what could have been a much more serious outcome to my life. A scar that reminds me of God’s protection saved by one of his own messengers.

Angel? yep. That’s what it was. I have no doubt.

Guardian Angel

Copyright @2012 “Did Jesus have a facebook page?”