A Sad Miracle

Over the last two months my aerobics instructor at my gym has been an emotional and psychological mess. She had put her little dog in a kennel she'd been using for ten years and when she got back from vacation the dog was gone. The kennel said it had been stolen and she lost her mind. Since money was no object she offered a five thousand dollar reward. She got a full page in the Post, the New York Press and even on the nightly news.

For her money was so object. She hired a private investigator and she went after the kennel and it's workers -in particular one Mexican guy of small stature with two children. In class she had openly expressed the fact the the worker was not legal here, she could call the IRS, and she would no matter what get to bottom of this. She even went as far as to make the worker undergo a poly graph test.

As time went by she came to the bitter conclusion that the dog had died and the kennel just didn't want to admit guilt.

Two months later, with enough prayers to choke a horse, a miracle occurred. A woman called from Queens, and said she had bought the dog on the street from some guy for her kids for Xmas.

When I heard the news I was overwhelmed with joy. I stopped her in the gym and gave her a hug. But I was not the only one. Hundreds of people at the gym were really and honestly happy for her. A news article picked up the reunion and it became a Hanuka/Xmas story.
Today I went to the gym to her class. She was well again- joyous and relieved.

As I followed her aerobics instructions it occurred to me how terrified that worker must have been though all this especially at this time of year. Here was a rich upper east side lady, who'd made him take a polygraph who knew he worked illegally and who didn't believe him when he said that he didn't know what happen to the dog. If I were in his shoes I would have been terrified.

With these concerns in mind, I walked up to her at the the end of class and I said." What are you going to do about that worker?"

She looked at me like I was nuts.
"I didn't say anything to him..I made him take polygraph..''
"Shouldn't you do something". I said..."apologize, a Xmas gift."
"I didn't say anything", she repeated. "He doesn't even speak English".

Our discussion was cut short as I realized that she didn't have any intention of all of cleaning up her mess. In my mind I said to myself "but you did a lot, you terrified this guy".
I was saddened. I was saddened because God had thought enough of her to bring her baby back, but she did not thing enough of God to take some responsibility and reach out this Mexican worker. She wouldn't even consider thanking him for sticking with the truth despite her suspicions, the suspicions of the private detective she hired and that of the police.

I stood back shocked because I figured that if I was God my feelings would be very hurt by this. If I took the time to answer your prayers when so many people around the world are praying for things 24/7 and I answered yours, I would expect that you would take the initiative and correct any wrongs that you initiated during this stressful period. And wondered , I wondered what would happened if she ever needed to pray for a miracle again and I shuttered inside.

That night I prayed. Dear God, please give that Mexican worker a special Xmas and give my aerobics instructor the wisdom to do the right thing. Love K