I was feeling tired on Ash Wednesday and  decided to get ashes in my Chelsea neighborhood instead of going to my church Marble.  I had lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant and when I went to the cashier to pay I didn’t have my wallet. I’m sure you know that sinking feeling of embarrassment that takes hold as you frantically look in your bag again and again but no wallet.  I asked to see the manager and the owner appeared and said, “no worries lady” Pay next time. I offered to leave my check book, (the only means of ID) I had on me. Standing beside me was a young woman who added my tab on her bill. I was stunned. She didn’t know. I vowed to never complain about millennials again. Her name was Claudia Crook. A funny name for someone who had just helped me out. I offered to give her a check which she accepted, another surprise to me. Because if it bounced it would cost her a substantial fee, but she took it.  I share this story because it was a meaningful day for me. A day that reignited my faith and my belief that Angels roam the earth interceding in the most unlikely situations. Claudia was placed on the road as I navigate my faith journey, at the very moment I needed a spark to reignite my faith in others.  A good Samaritan, indeed. She will never know how much I needed her. May she have a life full of miracles. She lives somewhere in Chelsea and I will find her.

Shared by Carmen Mattias