Fw: This is a Tear Jerker!!

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Fw: this is sweet a tear jerker

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> Angels, Once in a While

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> In September 1960, I woke up one morning

> > > with six hungry babies and

> > > >just

> > > > > >>75

> > > > > >>> cents in my pocket. Their father was gone.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> The boys ranged from three months to seven

> > > years; their sister was

> > > >two.

> > > > > >>> Their Dad had never been much more than a

> > > presence they feared.

> > > >Whenever

> > > > > >>> they heard his tires crunch on the gravel

> > > driveway they would

> > > >scramble

> > > > > to

> > > > > >>> hide under their beds. He did manage to

> > > leave 15 dollars a week to

> > > >buy

> > > > > >>> groceries. Now that he had decided to leave,

> > > there would be no more

> > > > > >>beatings,

> > > > > >>> but no food either. If there was a welfare

> > > system in effect in

> > > >southern

> > > > > >>> Indiana at that time, I certainly knew

> > > nothing about it.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> I scrubbed the kids until they looked brand

> > > new and then put on my

> > > >best

> > > > > >>> homemade dress. I loaded them into the rusty

> > > old 51 Chevy and drove

> > > >off

> > > > > >to

> > > > > >>> find a job. The seven of us went to every

> > > factory, store and

> > > >restaurant

> > > > > >in

> > > > > >>> our small town. No luck.

> > > > > >>> The kids stayed, crammed into the car and

> > > tried to be quiet while I

> > > > > tried

> > > > > >>to

> > > > > >>> convince whomever would listen that I was

> > > willing to learn or do

> > > > > >anything.

> > > > > >>I

> > > > > >>> had to have a job. Still no luck. The last

> > > place we went to, just a

> > > >few

> > > > > >>miles

> > > > > >>> out of town, was an old Root Beer Barrel

> > > drive-in that had been

> > > > > converted

> > > > > >>to

> > > > > >>> a truck stop. It was called the Big Wheel.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> An old lady named Granny owned the place and

> > > she peeked out of the

> > > > > window

> > > > > >>> from time to time at all those kids. She

> > > needed someone on the

> > > >graveyard

> > > > > >>> shift, 11 at night until seven in the

> > > morning. She paid 65 cents an

> > > >hour

> > > > > >>and

> > > > > >>> I could start that night. I raced home and

> > > called the teenager down

> > > >the

> > > > > >>> street that baby-sat for

> > > > > >>> people. I bargained with her to come and

> > > sleep on my sofa for a

> > > >dollar

> > > > > a

> > > > > >>> night. She could arrive with her pajamas on

> > > and the kids would

> > > >already

> > > > > be

> > > > > >>> asleep. This seemed like a good arrangement

> > > to her, so we made a

> > > >deal.

> > > > > >>That

> > > > > >>> night when and the little ones and I knelt

> > > to say our prayers we

> > > >all

> > > > > >>thanked

> > > > > >>> God for finding Mommy a job.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> And so I started at the Big Wheel. When I

> > > got home in the mornings I

> > > > > woke

> > > > > >>the

> > > > > >>> baby-sitter up and sent her home with one

> > > dollar of my tip

> > > >money-fully

> > > > > >>half

> > > > > >>> of what I averaged every night. As the weeks

> > > went by, heating bills

> > > > > added

> > > > > >>> another strain to my meager wage. The tires

> > > on the old Chevy had the

> > > > > >>> consistency of penny balloons

> > > > > >>> and began to leak. I had to fill them with

> > > air on the way to work

> > > >and

> > > > > >>again

> > > > > >>> every morning before I could go home. One

> > > bleak fall morning, I

> > > >dragged

> > > > > >>> myself to the car to go home and found four

> > > tires in the back seat.

> > > >New

> > > > > >>> tires! There was no note, no nothing, just

> > > those beautiful brand new

> > > > > >>tires.

> > > > > >>> Had angels taken up residence in Indiana? I

> > > wondered.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> I made a deal with the owner of the local

> > > service station. In

> > > >exchange

> > > > > >for

> > > > > >>> his mounting the new tires, I would clean up

> > > his office. I remember

> > > >it

> > > > > >>took

> > > > > >>> me a lot longer to scrub his floor than it

> > > did for him to do the

> > > >tires.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> I was now working six nights instead of five

> > > and it still wasn't

> > > > > enough.

> > > > > >>> Christmas was coming and I knew there would

> > > be no money for toys for

> > > > > the

> > > > > >>> kids. I found a can of red paint and started

> > > repairing and painting

> > > >some

> > > > > >>old

> > > > > >>> toys. Then I hid them in the basement so

> > > there would be something

> > > >for

> > > > > >>Santa

> > > > > >>> to deliver on Christmas morning. Clothes

> > > were a worry too. I was

> > > >sewing

> > > > > >>> patches on top of patches on the boys pants

> > > and soon they would be

> > > >too

> > > > > >far

> > > > > >>> gone to repair. On Christmas Eve the usual

> > > customers were drinking

> > > > > coffee

> > > > > >>in

> > > > > >>> the Big Wheel. These were the truckers, Les,

> > > , and Jim, and a

> > > >state

> > > > > >>> trooper named Joe. A few musicians were

> > > hanging around after a gig

> > > >at

> > > > > the

> > > > > >>> Legion and were dropping nickels in the

> > > pinball machine.

> > > > > >>> The regulars all just sat around and talked

> > > through the wee hours of

> > > >the

> > > > > >>> morning and then left to get home before the

> > > sun came up.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> When it was time for me to go home at seven

> > > o'clock on Christmas

> > > >morning

> > > > > >I

> > > > > >>> hurried to the car. I was hoping the kids

> > > wouldn't wake up before I

> > > > > >>managed

> > > > > >>> to get home and get the presents from the

> > > basement and place them

> > > >under

> > > > > >>the

> > > > > >>> tree. (We had cut down a small cedar tree by

> > > the side of the road

> > > >down

> > > > > by

> > > > > >>the

> > > > > >>> dump.) It was still dark and I couldn't see

> > > much, but there appeared

> > > >to

> > > > > >be

> > > > > >>> some dark shadows in the car-or was that

> > > just a trick of the night?

> > > > > >>Something

> > > > > >>> certainly looked different, but it was

> > > > > >>> hard to tell what. When I reached the car I

> > > peered warily into one

> > > >of

> > > > > the

> > > > > >>> side windows. Then my jaw dropped in

> > > amazement. My old battered

> > > >Chevy

> > > > > was

> > > > > >>> full-full to the top with boxes of all

> > > shapes and sizes. I quickly

> > > > > opened

> > > > > >>the

> > > > > >>> driver's side door, scrambled inside and

> > > kneeled in the front facing

> > > >the

> > > > > >>back

> > > > > >>> seat. Reaching back, I pulled off the lid of

> > > the top box. Inside was

> > > >a

> > > > > >>whole

> > > > > >>> case of little blue jeans, sizes 2-10! I

> > > looked inside another box:

> > > >It

> > > > > >>was

> > > > > >>> full of shirts to go with the jeans. Then I

> > > peeked inside some of

> > > >the

> > > > > >>other

> > > > > >>> boxes: There were candy and nuts and bananas

> > > and bags of groceries.

> > > > > There

> > > > > >>was

> > > > > >>> an enormous ham for baking, and canned

> > > vegetables and potatoes.

> > > >There

> > > > > was

> > > > > >>> pudding and Jell-O and cookies, pie filling,

> > > and flour. There was a

> > > > > >whole

> > > > > >>> bag of laundry supplies and cleaning items.

> > > And there were five toy

> > > > > >>trucks

> > > > > >>> and one beautiful little doll.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> As I drove back through empty streets as the

> > > sun slowly rose on the

> > > >most

> > > > > >>> amazing Christmas Day of my life, I was

> > > sobbing with gratitude. And

> > > >I

> > > > > >will

> > > > > >>> never forget the joy on the faces of my

> > > little ones that precious

> > > > > >morning.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> Yes, there were angels in Indiana that

> > > long-ago December. And they

> > > >all

> > > > > >>hung

> > > > > >>> out at the Big Wheel truck stop.

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>> I BELIEVE IN ANGELS! They live next door,

> > > around the corner, work in

> > > > > your

> > > > > >>> office, patrol your neighborhood, call you

> > > at midnight to hear you

> > > >laugh

> > > > > >>and

> > > > > >>> listen to you cry, teach your children, and

> > > you see them everyday

> > > > > without

> > > > > >>> even knowing it!. Send

> > > > > >>> this to someone you think is an angel!

> > > > > >>>

> > > > > >>

> > > > >

> > > >

> > >

> > >

> >______________________________________________________

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> > >

> >

> >

> >=====

> >

> >__________________________________________________

> >