Many people believe in guardian angels. I do. If ever I have had a doubt, I no longer do. You see, my guardian angel came to me when I was in desperate need. It was just a few minutes in one day and yet I am forever changed. This caused sleepless nights and hundreds of times reviewing what happened, moment by moment, in my head. My heart knows my guardian angel came to me.
My most beloved dog, half borzoi, half labrador, was approaching the end of his earthly days. On his last day he ate and had a brief time outside, but by afternoon the call to the vet was made to tell them I was bringing Ramsey in. The receptionist said the doctor was on his last appointment for the day and asked how soon could I come. I told her twenty to thirty minutes.
But Ramsey could no longer walk, so I dragged him on his blanket to the car in the garage where the seat was already laid down and the door was open. Though my car is very low, I could not lift his one hundred pound weight onto the seat. I tried and tried but I could not. I left him by the car door, garage door open, and ran for help to all my neighbors. No one was home! So I went back to the garage thinking I would flag down the next car or truck on what is normally a fairly busy street. No one came down the road.
An hour had passed and I am trying so hard and praying for enough strength to put him in the car. I was sweating and praying and crying and failing to lift Ramsey. So once again I leave determined to find help. I go down the drive to the street which is straight as an arrow. You can see five blocks east and five blocks west. Looking west I see a group of children on bikes with a dog coming my way. As they approached I stood to the side so they could pass by.
That is when I realized the children were young, not more than six or seven years old, and that the one in the middle was a man! He had no shirt on, just a small backpack. He was young, maybe mid-thirties, and his arms were defined by muscles. I ran to him begging for help, telling him I needed help to lift my dog into the car, a vet is waiting, he is there by the car, and I pointed to the open garage door.
The man doesn’t say a word. He just hands the German shepherd’s leash to a child. He walked his bike to the grass and walks into the garage. As he is looking down at Ramsey I tell him he is dying. I had not wanted to say that in front of the children.
The man easily lifts Ramsey into his arms, gently lays him on the seat and softly closes the car door. I turn to him to say thank you and shake his hand when I realize he is looking at me with dark eyes that are sparkling with small flashes of light. I stood there stunned.
Then he speaks and asks if I will pray with him. I said yes and he took my hands in his and aloud he prayed. It was beautiful and comforting. I don’t remember all that was said but I realized that
as he prayed he was giving his desires for God to receive this soul. He prayed that He sends this soul to Him for His love and protection he deserves.
After the prayer the man releases my hands and I look up to his face, those eyes. Then he spoke saying,
“I am Michael, you are Rebecca.”
I had never told him my name! How could he know? When he said “I am Michael,” I knew! Yes, yes you are!
Without another word he turned and walked to his bike. As I watched I saw all six children and the dog had lined up holding their bikes across the bottom of the driveway. A boy to the left said to me, “All will be well now.” What child speaks like that? Then I saw that the child in the middle was wearing a t-shirt that in large letters said “Jesus Loves You.”
Dazed, I turned, barely able to function, got in the car and backed out of the garage. When I looked east they were gone. Only a minute had passed but Michael and his band of angels were not there.
Ramsey passed before we got to the vet. He passed into the arms of God in Michael’s prayer.