Modern Day Miracle: Brittney Smart

My friend Brittney Smart shared the following story on her personal blog. That same day I read a talk by President Thomas S. Monson entitled "Consider the Blessings". The two meshed so perfectly and were so inspiring I asked her if I could share her story again here. She very graciously said yes.

Modern Day Miracle

So, Paul gave me some diamond earrings a couple of Christmases ago. It was a totally unexpected and completely random romantic gesture on his part, and I've treasured them more than any piece of jewelry I've ever gotten. (Well, except for my engagement/wedding rings. Heh.)

Fast-forward to this morning as we were getting into the truck to head to church. Running a tiny bit behind schedule (what else is new on Sunday mornings?), I had Violet in my arms and was also wearing my over-the-diagonal-shoulder diaper bag. My pencil skirt and heeled boots, coupled with the icy driveway, made it so I couldn't climb into the truck safely with Vi unless I first took off the bag. So I quickly pulled the strap off over my head and climbed in.

Once I got in the truck, I saw the back of one of my beloved diamond earrings lying on the shoulder strap on the seat. My fingers shot to my ear, and lo and behold, there was no earring there anymore. When I had taken off the diaper bag, the shoulder strap must've scraped my ear just right so that the earring dropped...into the snow on our driveway.

I nearly bawled. No, seriously. My kids were alarmed. I didn't want them to see me cry over an earring, so I held myself in check, but I was very very upset.

Went to church, yada yada yada.

When we got home, Paul parked the truck on the curb so we could investigate the scene of the diaper-bag-removal (we could tell where I had taken it off to get in the truck because my snow footprints were still there). The kids were trying to help look for the earring, but to be honest, they were just tromping all around.

Carson kept saying, "Mom, I'm so sorry you lost your earring. It'll be hard to find, because the snow looks like it has millions of diamond earrings in it!" (It was a beautifully sunny day, and the snow was sparkling.) He was sweet, too, saying that he wanted to save up his money to buy me new diamond earrings instead of the take-out-a-loan Helm's Deep lego set that he's got his heart set on buying. Tender kid.

But also to be honest, I was pretty sure it wouldn't be found. I was mentally making plans to take my solitary earring into a jeweler and having them put it onto a necklace chain instead.

After everyone went inside a few minutes later, I stayed outside and said a little silent prayer that, even though it wasn't super important in the universe, that little earring meant a lot to me, and I'd love to find it.

I literally stood up and for some reason immediately reenacted taking off the shoulder strap of the diaper bag, visualizing where the earring would most likely have sailed off to. My eyes followed an invisible arc in the air and, when they hit the snow, I saw a teesny tiny indentation. As I was on my way inside anyway, I halfheartedly checked the spot.

There was the earring. A tiny diamond stud. Buried an inch into the snow in a large driveway. Absolutely an impossible find...except for, not.

I showed it to my little family the minute I got inside, and everyone - including Paul (and, who am I kidding, myself still) - was shocked. We had a tender little teaching moment about prayers and how they're answered and I offered a prayer of gratitude right then.

As if those diamond earrings didn't mean a lot to me already...they are absolutely priceless to me now. Super humbling and amazing experience. What a miracle!

"Again, my brothers and sisters, our Heavenly Father is aware of our needs and will help us as we call upon Him for assistance. I believe that no concern of ours is too small or insignificant. The Lord is in the details of our lives." ~President Monson

The Lord has Comforted His People

There were two pink lines on the pregnancy test, and I wasn't sure what to think about it! This would be my 4th pregnancy, but we only have one child, and the thought of losing another baby was pretty terrifying. It had been three months since we had started trying, but I was in denial about it, because I just didn't feel like I'd ever be ready for another scary pregnancy. When I saw the results, I couldn't be in denial anymore, and for the next week anxiety filled my heart, more than I have ever felt before in my life. I worried that we wouldn't get to hold this baby, that something would go wrong at any moment. I stressed out about lifting anything, and the day my son woke up with a fever really set me into a panic. What if I got a fever? You're not supposed to get your temps above 100, or the baby could die since they can't regulate their own body temperatures! Besides the concern for this baby, I also felt even more sad about losing our last baby. If there hadn't been a cord accident which caused her to pass away at 23 weeks, she would have only been 2 months old, and we certainly wouldn't be even thinking of a pregnancy right then. Becoming pregnant again wouldn't be such a scary thought either. 

I also remembered that being stressed was bad too, because high blood pressure can cause problems. I needed relief, since there were still another 8 or so months to go, and I couldn't spend every waking minute dealing with such high anxiety. Adding to those issues, my son also got hurt that week, and I worried that I couldn't keep him safe either! I worried about him getting an infection, and becoming really sick. I wanted to lock my family in our house for the next 20 years, as if I could really control everything, and keep us all safe from harm...
After about a week of this, I was driving home from grocery shopping one night, and started crying, again. I started praying, and told Heavenly Father that I didn't think I could do this again. As I continued to drive and pray (with my eyes open), I felt this wonderful, comforting feeling. I felt like I was being hugged, and that Heavenly Father was saying, "I'm right here." and, "I won't leave you comfortless." I felt a bit better, enough to dry my eyes and act like a normal parent when I got home. Then the next day, I was listening to my old institute teacher, Jack Christianson's CD called, "Be Not Troubled." and he spoke of a verse in Isaiah. This is what I wrote about it on my personal blog:


Isaiah 49:13
"Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted."
Brother Christianson emphasized "HIS people." The Lord has comforted HIS people! we aren't just human beings wandering the earth, uncared for, and left alone. WE ARE HIS. He cares for us, and will comfort us. He will also have mercy on us when we feel afflicted.
I. love. that. I felt that I was comforted and that He had mercy on me. Not just everyone all together, but me personally.
I also found a great one as I was searching through Isaiah, chapter 40 verse 11 "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young."
I love the visualization in this scripture. He shall gather our babies (here and in heaven), and carry them in His bosom- watching over them and caring for them! I don't have to worry so much, because the Savior is here, caring for my children. My son would be OK, injury and all. My stillborn daughter is already in His bosom, being lovingly watched over, and this new little spirit is also in His hands. God cares for His creations, of which His children are His greatest, be it 4 weeks gestation, or 80 years!
I also appreciated the "gently leading those with young" part. He'll watch over our children, and be with us in our pregnancies. I have spent a lot of time wondering why pregnancy/childbirth has to be so hard, and wished that Heavenly Father had made it a bit easier to get babies here. This was a good reminder that God cares about his daughters, who are willing to give up physical/emotional comfort and peace of mind, to bring His spirit children here to Earth.

I really needed these experiences and reminders. I'm glad to know that we are in the Lord's hands, and that even if things don't always turn out like I want them to, I know that everything is being taken care of. I'd really rather that things go according to my plan at the moment, because I still don't know how this pregnancy will progress. All I know is that I've definitely felt more peace since that prayer and since finding those scriptures, and I hope it continues. I also know that at the end of this life, we will all be able to see things a bit more clearly, and maybe then we'll be able to understand the "why's" of our life. Until then, I know that as Sister Linda K. Burton quoted in the General Relief Society Meeting: “All that is unfair about life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.”Thank goodness for that! 

Thank you dear friend for sharing your story with us. I think all of us at one time or another have had to deal with fear. Thank you for reminding us that Christ is there waiting to "gently lead us along". He indeed doth "comfort HIS people".