A Treasury of Miracles for Women by Karen Kingsbury Read Free Book Online Page A

number of occasions. “But never, ever go near the water. Understand, honey?”
    Bonnie would nod dutifully. “Yes, Mommy. Yes, Daddy.”
    The rules were the same that Sunday and for the duration of the visit Bonnie stayed inside or on the front porch but was not allowed to play in the backyard around the fishpond.
    The adults had been talking in the front yard for ten minutes when Lola began scanning the yard, checking over her shoulder toward the inside of the house. “Has anyone seen Bonnie?” she asked. There was concern in her voice and she stood up.
    Before anyone had a chance to say anything, there was a shrill scream from the backyard. Racing toward the sound, Lola tore around the house with the others close be hind her.
    “Bonnie!” Lola screamed as she turned the corner.
    The child was standing in the middle of the stone walkway, dripping wet. It was obvious to Lola and each of the adults that the child had fallen into the pond.
    “Oh, dear God,” Lola said as she raced to her little daughter and pulled her close. Bonnie was crying hysteri cally and Lola rubbed the drenched back of her Easter dress in an attempt to calm her down.
    Jeffrey stood nearby, gazing down at the stone walkway. “Lola, look at this,” he said finally. “I can't believe it.”
    He pointed to the walkway where Bonnie was standing. There were drips of water and small pools that had col lected underneath her. But everywhere else the walkway was completely dry. There were no footprints or drips or trails of water leading from any point around the pond to the spot where Bonnie now stood.
    “The sidewalk is dry.”
    Lola glanced about and her eyes narrowed as she stud ied the walkway that circled the pond. Her husband was right. “Do you think the sun dried it up?” she asked.
    Jeffrey shook his head quickly. “No. It's too cold back here. The sun sets toward the west, out in front of the house. It's been shady back here for more than an hour. And Bonnie just got out of the water a moment ago.”
    They left Bonnie in the caring hands of her grandmother and studied the circumference of the pond more closely. “Look,” Jeffrey said, pointing to the pond's wide, rounded edges. “There's no way she could have grabbed that side and climbed out by herself.”
    Lola saw that the pond's cement sides sloped up from the bottom, making it impossible for a child Bonnie's size to reach the side, let alone grasp it in her small hand. In stantly, Jeffrey and Lola caught each other's glance.
    “Remember what the doctor said when Bonnie didn't get hurt by that curtain rod?” Jeffrey asked, his voice nearly a whisper.
    Lola nodded.
    “Well, I think it's true. Whatever just happened here today was some kind of miracle. God is looking out for our little Bonnie.”
    Throughout the evening, the Randalls tried to get their daughter to discuss the incident with them.
    “What happened, honey?” Jeffrey would ask, getting down on his knees and staring straight into Bonnie's light green eyes. “Tell Mommy and Daddy how you fell into the pond and how you got out.”
    But each time the incident was discussed, Bonnie would cry fiercely. Eventually, the couple decided to drop it. They agreed that Bonnie must have suffered a near drowning and together they thanked God for his protection, asking him to continue to watch over their little girl.
    Years passed and Bonnie grew. She had no memory of the fishpond incident but she maintained a desperate fear of water. Eventually she married and moved onto the U.S.Army base where her husband was stationed. During that time she decided there was something she had to do. She contacted the chaplain on the base and told him about her fears.
    “I know I could live my whole life hating the water and just do my best to avoid it,” she said. “But I don't like let ting this thing get the better of me. I don't want to be afraid anymore. Can you help me?”
    The chaplain settled into his chair and gazed thought fully at