a funny thing happened on the way to the bank

We had to run a few errands this morning and made a stop at a certain office supply store. The line at the one open register was really long, so one of the employees beckoned me to a closed register. As she was ringing me up, she asked me the question we've come to expect, "What's wrong with him?" Now, some people may be offended when strangers ask this question, but I welcome it. It gives me a chance to give a quick run-down of his heroic start to life. After I explained that he doesn't eat enough, she looked at him with the care & concern in her face that only fellow parents can have.

She then looked straight into my eyes and said, "You need to go home and pray. You do that and he'll be eating in 2 months. 2 months." I froze in my tracks. She could have said any number of weeks, months, years...but she said 2 months. The exact timeline that Duke gave us. 2 months. Ok, maybe that was just a coincidence. She continued talking to Baby C, asked me his name and told me she is going to put him on her prayer list at her Church. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a small charm. Handing it to me, she said, "this is my lucky charm. I want him to have it." It was a turtle. My favorite animal/reptile. I love turtles. They are all over Baby C's room. The first item we ever purchased for his room was a turtle. So maybe this is not just coincidence. I graciously thanked her and promised when he's eating, we'll return to let her know and return her lucky charm to her. As I turned to leave, she added, "You know God sent you to my line for a reason, don't you?"

I was shaking when I got to the car. I mean, I've seen this woman hundreds of times and never had a conversation with her. I am a believer in signs. I don't seek them out every hour of the day, but I do take notice when they slap me in the face. And this one slapped me in the face.

So, I'm going to do just what the lady ordered. I'm going to pray and I'm going to hold tight to her lucky turtle. And I'm going to return when Baby C is eating to thank her and show her the power of prayer.