I wanted to tell you about my son's angel: This happened the summer he turned eight, it's absolutely 100% true.

One fine Sunday afternoon, after sleeping in a bit late, we hurried off to church. My son, Nathaniel, was a bit put out, he hates to be rushed. But I explained to him that we needed to go say "Good morning" to God. So, he cheered up, and we ran out the door. Church is close enough to walk, and we sometimes do, but we’d planned to go several places afterwards, so we took the car.

It was that beautiful time of early summer in Massachusetts, where the mornings are cool still, but the days warm up in a lovely kind of way. Nathaniel had developed a passion for yard sales since we had gone to one some weeks before and he'd managed to find some toys for a quarter. He wanted to go again to search for treasures! I gave him a quick hug, and we hurried off...

After church, we walked hand in hand back to the car. The parking lot was crowded, as usual, and we had to wait a bit to exit. That was ok, we were singing snatches of songs with the radio, and chatting about the "things we learned today" from the sermon.

Well, traffic cleared and we headed out. Instead of going straight home, I decided to treat Nat to breakfast at a local buffet. So, instead of turning left for home, we turned right for the restaurant. 10 seconds later there was a huge bang, and Nathaniel started screaming as I slammed on the brakes.

Glass filled the air with razor sharp pellets. The window next to Nathaniel's head had shattered. Someone had thrown a rock at the car. Honest to God, from the sound of it, I thought we’d been shot at!

Nathaniel was literally hysterical. Panicking, he was struggling with his seatbelt, trying to get away, he was frantic. I unfastened him and dragged him across to my lap and jumped out of the car and ran with him in my arms to the sidewalk. I didn’t even take time to check and see if he was ok, we just literally ran away from the car.

There was blood everywhere, on my arms, face, neck, my clothes, his clothes. I was covered with it. We were both shaking. Nathaniel was so scared he was trying to run away, and was crying in great heaving sobs. I grabbed him and hugged him close to me, I was almost crying too.

Neighbors had heard glass break and the tires squeal as I stopped the car, and heard Nathaniel crying, and came running. Someone called the EMT's and they rushed over. I frantically checked Nathaniel for injury, but I couldn't see anything. Nothing! The EMT's were brushing glass off his hair, and when we pulled off his shirt, we were shaking out more glass, but there wasn't a mark on him!!

I had cuts all over my hands and right arm, from the glass, hundreds of tiny slashes from the flying pellets of glass. Nathaniel's face had been right next to the window, and he didn't have a mark on him... no one could believe it. The EMT's even checked his ears and eyes, just to make sure he was ok. He was perfect. They were amazed. The people on the sidewalk couldn’t believe it either. The EMT’s just kept turning him around, poor baby, looking for even one little cut or scratch. There was nothing!

I just kneeled there holding him, looking at the blue shattered glass everywhere. I was just whispering over and over, "Thank You, God, oh thank You" - Natty had stopped crying now, and was more worried about getting home to get a shirt to put on... I think he heard me whisper a thank you... and he just looked up at me with shining eyes, and said, "But Mommy, you SAID my guardian angel would protect me."

Yep honey, I guess I did. And wow... all I can STILL say, is "Thank You, oh, thank You, thank You!"

Miracles do still happen. I know, we experienced one.

In His Love,

Lisa Alekna

06/04/1999