Listen Up!
Newsletter
The essence of a
strong relationship is
to be open to the perceptions of others.
Carol
M. Welsh, Author/Speaker
This
newsletter supplements Carol’s book: STOP WHEN YOU
SEE RED
To learn more
about the four perceptual styles, to
order the book,
or to contact Carol Welsh, click here: www.stopred.com
December
2006
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Say What?
"Christmas tag-sale.
Handmade gifts for the
hard-to-find person." And, if you do
have a person on your list that has everything, how about this? "For
sale to kind master. Full-grown domesticated tigress, goes daily walk
untied,
and eats flesh from hand." Well,
maybe not … (From: http://humor.about.com)
Have
a happy holiday filled with good cheer and laughter.
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Tip of the Month
During
this
holiday time, we can get so caught up in parties and buying gifts that
we
forget the greatest gift of all, the gift of love and acceptance. That
is truly
what the holiday season is all about. Also, when we reach out and touch
someone
with love, you might be creating a miracle for that person. It’s
something he
or she needed at that moment and you just happened to be there at the
right
place and the right time.
Miracles Everywhere
I read a quote in the Reader’s
Digest magazine a few years ago, which I love: “Coincidences are
God’s
little miracles.”
Recently I bought a loaf
of bread that needed to be sliced.
As I waited patiently, the woman was diverted from the task by another
store
employee who couldn’t operate the meat-slicing machine. As she stood
helplessly
by, my attendant waited on two people. As she started to leave (she was
supposed to leave 20 minutes earlier), I spoke up about my bread still
sitting
in the bread slicer. She apologized profusely for forgetting about me.
When I
reached the checkout area, the express lane was closed. I had plenty of
time
before my appointment when I stopped to buy bread, but now I realized
if I
didn’t hurry, I would be late. The man in front of me asked me the
price of the
bread. When I told him, he handed me the money and told me to go in
front of
him. I was prepared to pay but he insisted that I take his money. I
gratefully
accepted his thoughtfulness.
Was it a coincidence that
he was there when I was running
out of time? I think it was a miracle. I usually am assertive, yet for
some
reason I waited patiently while the woman sliced meat or cheese for two
other
customers. If I hadn’t, I would have been in a different checkout line.
Now I’m
only talking about a $3.00 loaf of bread. But the next day, something
else
happened and now I had $5.00. I doubled it and gave it to someone else,
creating
a miracle in her time of need.
This summer, while my
husband and I were on our honeymoon, we
went to a restaurant where we could watch the sunset while dining. At
first I
was disappointed because the lake was causing clouds to form, blocking
the
sunset. But then a miracle occurred. Suddenly the shimmering red sun
broke
through a little square opening in the clouds. When the clouds shifted,
the
opening formed a radiant red heart. I looked around the restaurant and
no one else
was looking at it. I felt God created it just for us. Miracles are
everywhere
if you are open to them.
What could be considered
one of the worse years of my life
was actually a year of miracles. My late husband was in a serious auto
accident
in 1996. Several miracles occurred during the accident that prevented
him from
being killed or from others being injured. After 6 months, he was able
to walk
without a walker but then the vision in his good eye started to go. The
previous year, he had lost the use of his other eye due to a detached
retina. This
eye surgery was in a hospital that previously had been a Catholic
hospital.
Rather than a sterile, dreary outpatient waiting room, it was in a
former
chapel with a high ceiling and stained glass windows. There were
comfortable
easy chairs, loveseats, and couches. It was a relaxing atmosphere.
However, after
three hours I became very anxious because people were coming and going
and yet
no word on my husband. When I stepped out to call my in-laws, the
doctor came
into the waiting room but left because I wasn’t there.
Upon my return, I went to
the desk to ask if there was any
news. When there wasn’t, I panicked. I didn’t know what I would do if
my
husband went blind. I was already exhausted from his long recovery from
the
accident. I sat down in a loveseat because someone else now occupied
the easy
chair where I had been sitting. I turned and started a conversation
with the
woman next to me. I told her about my fears. She said her daughter had
gone
blind, and related what they did to make her life as independent as
possible. She
held my hands and asked me if I would like to pray. I nodded and she
quietly
prayed. Then she took me in her arms as I softly wept. I knew God had
placed
her in my life at my time of need. It wasn’t just a coincidence. It was
a
miracle. Then she told me her story.
When her daughter’s
illness caused her to lose her sight,
she had to quit her job. Consequently, the woman and her husband used
up their
life savings. She slipped into depression and decided to end her life.
She
filled the tub with water, put the razor on the tub, and climbed in.
But then a
miracle occurred. She slashed her wrist and it didn’t bleed. So she
tried it
again. Same thing. She tried twice on her other wrist to no avail.
Bewildered,
she got out of the tub to answer the phone! When she said “Hello,” the
voice on
the other end screamed in anguish, “Leslie!”
When she asked, “Who is this?” no one answered.
Leslie said, “Now, why
would I get out of the tub to answer
the phone when I’m trying to commit suicide? From that point on, I knew
God
wanted me to live so I could reach out to others in their time of need.
I know
that is why you were meant to sit down next to me.” She showed me the
scars on
her wrists. Peace hugged me and I knew everything was going to be okay.
Shortly
after, the doctor arrived and explained the surgery was delayed for
three hours
because my husband’s blood sugar could not be stabilized. The doctor
was able
to save the eye.
Miracles are everywhere.
Sometimes they are disguised as “it
could have been much worse.” Like when my car broke down next to a
tavern (before
cell phones) shortly after I got off the interstate. It was
Open
your
eyes to God’s little miracles. You’ll be amazed that they are
everywhere. You
never know when your actions might be a miracle for someone else.
Copyright © 2006 Carol M.
Welsh. All Rights
Reserved