Letters to Heaven: Please, No More Excitement in My Life

"Be thankful for quiet days, when nothing special seems to be happening. Instead of being bored by the lack of action, use times of routine to seek My Face." Jesus Calling April 13

July 27, 2013

Dear Jesus:

Life got on the way and I have not written You in over a month. Three weeks ago, I was finally given the green light to start driving. Thank You, that was a blessing. I know that I have been a burden to Rafe and the kids. They had to take me everywhere: therapy, work, doctors' appointments, the rehab center so I could visit my dad... Even though I tried to cut down on all the extras, no beauty salon and no pleasure shopping, they still had to drive me around plenty. They also had to take on a lot of what I normally do: grocery shopping, running errands, etc. Finally, I have been able to resume my responsibilities and give them a break.

Right on time because the day after I resumed driving, Chabeli had a tonsillectomy. Thank You Jesus that everything went well. There were no complications. The recovery has been the most difficult part. She has been in a lot of pain, especially the first week. The pain medications helped a bit but the effect would start to wear off after two hours and she could only take them every four hours. It was hard for her to swallow and when she slept, it was even worst. She would wake up with her mouth completely dry which made the pain even more unbearable. It took ten days for the pain to finally subside. Last weekend she finally had her first taste of solid food. She ate a piece of Cuban toast by dipping it in cafe con leche. Thank You, Jesus, for holding her hand through this process. Please finish healing her fully. It still hurts when she yawns and her voice still sounds as if she swallowed a frog.

The day after her surgery, we had some more excitement in our lives. The electrical pole in our backyard exploded various times until it caught fire. I was afraid that our palm trees would catch fire too. We called the firemen and FPL. We were without power for five hours, and it was only for that amount of time because I told FPL that my daughter had just had surgery and we couldn't be here without power. So they came and gave us a temporary line. It took almost a week for them to come out for the permanent repairs.

And the crown of the excitement belongs to Alex, again. Four days ago, the phone rang. I answered and this is what I heard: "This is a Miami-Dade police officer. I'm here with your son Alex. Don't worry, he's alive. I pulled him over because he was driving recklessly. I need you to come over. I'll wait five minutes." My heart was pounding inside my chest. Alex had just left the house. I went over with Rafe. As soon as we left our neighborhood, we could see the blue police lights in the distance. There were two cops. One was in plain clothes in an unmarked car. He was the one that called me. He said that Alex was going at 65 miles per hour down 87th avenue, and that he was zig zagging from lane to lane. When he cut in front of him, he stopped him.

Thank You, Jesus, for looking out for my Alex. He could have gotten into an accident and the phone call that I received could have been quite different. But You protected him and placed a very nice police officer on his tail, as soon as he left the house.

Needless to say, Rafael was furious. Alex had already been punished because of the egging incident earlier this summer. Originally, he was punished the entire summer, but then we reduced it only til the end of June. I guess that was a mistake because obviously, he didn't learn the lesson. Now he's punished til he leaves for college in August, and this time, there will be no mercy. He cried a lot that night, which was good because Alex never cries. He always bottles up everything inside. I know he was crying because it's his last summer before he goes away to college and now all his plans are ruined. But I told him that he had to look at it from a different angle. I said: "Alex, that police officer may have saved your life. If he had not stopped you and you had continued driving the way you were driving, you could have gotten into an accident. What if you had lost your life? Then it would have truly been your last summer. Yes, you are grounded, but you will have more summers. You are alive. You are still going to see your friends at camp because the grounding doesn't include your job. You are still going to go with us to Siesta Key. I know that at this moment, you are looking at it from the point of view that you got caught. But one day, you are going to be thankful that you got caught. The police officer could have given you a ticket and washed his hands. But he took the trouble to call us. That shows that he is a man who cares. And that also shows me that you have an angel looking out for you." He didn't respond but I know that he listened. Last night there was a party, this afternoon there's a pool party going on and tonight there is another party. He will miss them all, but is better to miss out on a few parties than to miss out on the rest of his life.

I know, Jesus, that he is still too young to understand, but I thank You from the bottom of my heart because I know that on July 23rd, You saved Alex's life. Every day, I entrust my children to You, because I know that You love them even more than I do. You have the tools to take care of them, better than I ever could. I'm crying as I write this, but You know they are tears of joy because I feel so blessed. Thank You, Jesus, for always looking out for my babies and for always sending angels to protect them. But please, Jesus, don't send me any more excitement. I need peace and tranquility. My heart can't take it anymore.

I love You, Jesus!!!

July 27, 2017

Dear Jesus:

Thank You for giving me the most peaceful summer I've had in a decade. I don't like excitement anymore. I'm grateful for boring days when nothing happens. I'm "thankful for quiet days, when nothing special seems to be happening."

I love You, Jesus!!!