Michaela's Miracle

The idea for this post came to me the other morning on my way to work.  It was May 13, the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima.  I was listening to a radio segment about the apparitions in Fatima and how it was to three children that Our Lady chose to appear and share her message.  The thought of Mary appearing to children led me to think of Jesus telling us we needed to have the faith of a child.  And that led me to think of when my own children were young and how often we learned lessons from them.  These thoughts reminded me of Michaela's Miracle and that I should share it.

My mom had a very difficult life with many, many health issues dating back to her early childhood days.   Possibly because of the challenges her health created, she was a woman of incredible faith with a strong devotion and love for our Blessed Mother.  Her faith and her grandchildren were two of her greatest blessings.  My daughter, Michaela, was particularly close to her Granma.  They talked on the phone for hours, always sat next to each other at meals, cuddled and read together, and often went to adoration together.  Mom shared what she loved most with the people she loved most. 

When Michaela was just 7, her dear Granma took a terrible turn for the worse.  We were on vacation and got to the hotel for the night and there were 4 phone messages waiting for me.  I called my dad to find out that my mom was in ICU.  She wasn't in our regular local hospital, they had immediately transferred her to the regional trauma hospital.  The specialists there said that there was nothing they could do and told my dad to call the family since it would probably be just a day or two. 

My husband and I had the horrendous task of telling our 3, 5, and 7 year old children that they weren't going to see Mickey the next day but also that their beloved Granma was on her way to heaven.   We decided that I would fly home as soon as I could get a flight and my husband would drive home with the kids. Since this was in the very early 2000's, buying plane tickets online was not something that everyone could do.  Thankfully, one of my dearest friends & her husband have always been amazing with technology.  In just a couple of hours I had a ticket home from the nearest airport and for a great price.

The next couple of days were a whirl wind of travel, seeing my mom who was comatose and spending time with Dad, my brothers, and sister.  It was surreal.  I was often on phone duty at my parents house, keeping distant family and friends updated with the situation.  I remember telling a cousin that it was only a matter of time and there was virtually no hope when Michaela interrupted me.  Here's the conversation that followed:
Me (impatiently): What Michaela? 
Michaela:  Is Granma still alive?
Me: Yes, right now she is but not for long.
Michaela: So she is alive?
Me(even more impatient): Yes.
Michaela: So if God wants her to live, then she will live, right?
Me (completely humbled): Yes, exactly Sweetie.  If God wants her to live, she will live.
Michaela: So I can ask God to let her live?
Me (amazed and proud of her, a bit embarrassed by my lack of faith): Yes, Sweetie. 

I shared that conversation with my dad and my husband.  My dad paused and said that's how we are supposed to have faith like children.  I agreed.  Within days, the doctors were seeing so much progress that they reran the exact tests that told them there was no hope.  There was so much improvement that they said recovery was possible.  They also shared that she shouldn't have been able to recover and there was no medical reason for it.  Dad just smiled and said we'll call it Michaela's Miracle. 

It was a long tough journey that took many months.  Mom was in and out of the hospital and rehabs multiple times.  When she was finally well enough to get out of the house, her first outing was to Michaela's First Communion.