My friend Deneene is a hippie. I say that in the most positive way. She’s free. She wears harem pants and great shirts and forty bracelets. She is always sporting a new henna tattoo. She’s an accomplished horsewoman with nerves of steel. She’s a widow with a healing heart. And…she paints rocks.

She shared this talent with the Girl Campers last weekend at Blackwater Falls. I tried my hand at it and I’m not sure I have the patience it entails to do such small details. I have to admit, I did not fully understand what this whole rock painting thing was about until I saw the Western WV Rocks page on FB. People paint these rocks and stick a little label on the bottom instructing the finder to post a picture on the Rocks FB page and where they found it. Then they hide it someplace else for someone else to find. Some people write inspirational messages on the rocks instead of pictures. Some write scriptures. It’s great fun and a free way to connect with others and send joy out into the world!

A few months ago, I noticed Deneene had taken an interest in all things elephant. Rings, necklaces, harem pants…if it had an elephant on it, she was diggin’ it. For a long time, she couldn’t figure out why she had this sudden fascination. It seemed like everywhere she turned, there was an elephant. Over the weekend, Deneene was telling her new friends the story of losing her husband to a sudden heart attack. She told them how Mike told her he’d had some episodes of “asthma” that made him feel like he had an elephant sitting on his chest. She suddenly stopped in mid-sentence and had an A-HA moment. Just like I see bluebirds and others smell cigar smoke around me, she’s getting elephants from her guardian angel.

Deneene told her daughter about the elephant sightings and she pooh-poohed the whole thing saying it was a coincidence. I went to lunch with Deneene yesterday and we went into an antique store afterwards to look around. She had just finished telling me about her daughter’s skepticism when we both looked down at a bowl and gasped. There, sitting on the top, was a beautiful elephant cookie cutter!!! I mean, really…when was the last time YOU saw an elephant cookie cutter? I’ve been baking for 50 years and I’ve never seen one!

Guardian angels. Elephants. Blue birds. Cigar smoke. I believe. The Bible says humans do not become angels. But it’s also very clear we HAVE guardian angels. What better way to let us know they’re watching out for us than to leave a trace that is unmistakably connected to our lost loved one? I find it so comforting and reassuring to know…with absolute certainty…there is so much more than what we see in this world. ❤️

““But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭13:32‬ ‭NIV‬‬t