I have 20 minutes until it isn’t Saturday any more. For the entire day I kept wanting to write, tapping out little anecdotes in my head about how this day began with a damp outlook, but how we keep ourselves afloat by choosing to be happy rather than letting the grit and grime get us down. However, I just kept moving through the day, making mental notes that have already escaped me, and alas, I am too tired to remember it all. Was it the fact that it has been raining since the beginning of time? Oh, yes, that is how it started; the day, that is. Wet. And for all my patience and umbrella balancing, my little Yorkie couldn’t ‘go’ and my newspaper weighed in at sopping wet despite that blue plastic very permeable sleeve that it wears.  But this I took in stride and found myself not complaining; just thankful for the cutest little dog ever! He sat patiently awaiting his treat while I placed dripping umbrella, doggy jacket, and my shoes on the water proof sunroom floor. There’s the other thing I was thinking – how great it is to have a place to track mud and rain into and not worry about it! Comfort to the max. After spreading the important pages of the paper, that being the crossword puzzle, the front page and the obituaries, over chairs to dry, we headed for the coffee pot and breakfast plans. God bless the newspaper carrier; all I have to do is walk out and pick it up. They, on the other hand, have to get all those papers distributed day after day, no matter the weather. I’ll bet the rain gets through her open car window as she tosses the daily news onto the driveway. What’s more, our carrier is more faithful than the US mail! No kidding; during this winter’s snow, we missed only one day of the paper, but several days of mail were missed.

Well, my 20 minutes are up, and it’s Sunday morning already, but I’m on a roll. Just as I was starting to feel dry, cozy and full I called our daughter who lives two or three hours away, depending on who is driving. Had she gone to the mailbox? No, but she said she would, and when I called her back to see if she got the valentine I sent to her from her fur baby, her voice was changed. She said, “Mama, I’m kind of scared….” Do you know what that does to a mother’s heart when her normally very brave daughter has gone out to the mailbox and comes back inside saying she is scared? The rest of my coffee got cold, and my stomach was churning, but I didn’t let on to her. It appears that someone has obtained her personal information and she has received the first evidence of it. Let’s see, what can I be optimistic about here? The first thing I did was just nothing; I listened, and can’t recall what I did finally say because my mind was racing, and I didn’t want to make her feel worse. As if. So I am extremely grateful for whatever that protective coating is that causes us to sit stunned and silent rather than comprehending everything at once. That has to be a blessing that God built in for our own protection. We ended our phone conversation so that she could get right on the notifications that needed to be made, like bank account, credit reports, and so forth. I went directly to my husband and said “we need to pray – now” and we did. And that was where I became so thankful that I knew I would have to write before the day was over. Gratitude swelled in my heart that we don’t have to suffer insults alone. We do not have to work out the solutions alone. We have a hope for help today as well as for eternity. The next life does not have all dibs on seeing the results of a strong faith. Without the knowledge that I have a God who is able to do exceedingly greater than I can even imagine or ask, I would be left with our simple human devices. Unstable, uncertain, hit or miss people power is not what I want working for my girl! After praying, I immediately called my sister, bypassing her preferred method of texting to communicate. I wasted no time telling her to put her life on hold as she was headed out the door for a wedding shower we were both attending mid morning. “I need to talk to my sister, and fall just a little bit apart”, I said and felt the tears very near. I explained what was happening and that I had kept emotions in check for my daughter, but now I needed to let it flow. Would you believe her niece on her husband’s side of the family had her identity stolen! It was a nightmare for her and she became very well acquainted with what to do and how to proceed. I am so very very sorry for her that it happened, but I am also very thankful there was someone we knew with the voice of experience for my daughter to be advised. I am very thankful too, that my daughter felt better after speaking to “Mary” (fake name). How very thankful I am that I have a husband who can share with me the concern of our children, and to whom I can go to pray with me. What a blessing!  Counting my blessings would be quite incomplete without telling you how much it means to have a sister to call.  I’ve alway been thankful for her, and as much as we fought as children, it is a wonder she will even speak to me. But I think all that fighting creates a bond like no other. Her concern was genuine, and she immediately sent Mary’s phone number to my daughter, and told me it would be difficult, but we’d be okay.

As I arrived at the shower, where my sister had already told of the crime against my daughter, I found open arms and warm hugs for my hurting heart; and enough concern for my daughter’s welfare to reach the whole 150 miles away to her! I called her later and said “you should feel very rich right now, with all the love and good wishes you received today”! Thank you God for the sweet hearts of good friends! Thank you for Macy’s employee who answered my daughter’s call this morning and was so kind and helpful. I should explain that it was a Macy’s statement in the mail this morning, and she doesn’t have a Macy’s account. So, it was explained to her that someone opened an account, many many miles away, using all the personal information that belongs to my daughter, and did so to get the discount on the clothes they bought. The DISCOUNT? When you know you aren’t even going to be paying for them? OK…..Well, I guess that gave them a legitimate reason to open a new account, I say with sarcasm. Whoever that was, will never know that I sat down this morning and prayed for them to have a change of heart and destroy the information they are using, and well, if you’re thinking I asked for them to be blessed, you are wrong. I am after all, a mother. Don’t mess with my cubs. But I did refrain from wishing them any harm. Truly. I am thankful that God has directed us to wish no harm to others, because I don’t think it would have made my day to unleash those kind of negative thoughts. I am going to stay optimistic, and positive, and thankful. A dry roof over our heads; good friends and family; prayer and a Lord Who loves my daughter even more than I do! It was indeed a good day.

This is indeed the day that the Lord has made and I will be glad in it. Because I can.