Right Place, Right Time

As in the last post, this is about a miracle of God that he allowed me to witness last week.

I work in a preschool in my town. I am a teacher in the toddler room which is a job I LOVE. However, infants are my heart. I love to see the first baby smiles and hear the first coos. See the determination on the face of a six month old as they work so hard to crawl that first time. And even the tears are something I love, because I know that with a hug and a smile I can make things all better. It is a wonderful job to have.

Last week was an eventful one. New babies were in the infant room as well as the older ones that had been coming for a few months. Training was going on to get new teachers ready to take over for a few that were moving on to greener pastures. One such teacher in training is a young woman I'll call Shelley (names have been changed for protection). Shelley started work on Monday, training to work in both the toddler room part-time as well as the infant room. A very sweet lady, she seemed to fit the bill for the rooms perfectly.

While I'm certain that any new job can be overwhelming, working with children is all the more stressful. Learning names and personalities, routines and timetables all can add up to a VERY stressful time. Shelley flew through Monday without complaint, even easily, if you could term it that way.

Tuesday arrived and Shelley came in to do what she had to do. Everything was basically the same as the day before. However, at 1:45 p.m. all of that changed. It was then that after the other teacher in the infant room had gotten a 6 month old baby up from nap that it happened. One minute this child was laughing and playing on the floor the next she was having a major seizure. Her eyes rolled back and she trembled violently. The lead teacher ran from the room to get help, while Shelley moved the child to a comfortable position. EMS was called immediately and First Responders gathered around. The tiny child was turning blue due to lack of oxygen. Shelley adjusted her to allow for breath as the first responders took over.

The child was taken to the Children's Hospital where she was given countless tests to determine the cause of this event. She was kept overnight for observation, yet all tests were inconclusive as to a definitive cause, except that perhaps it was caused by a virus.

The next morning in group prayer, the teachers of the classroom were praised for their cool headed thinking and response to what could have been much worse. Everyone was still shaken up, but knowing that this child was safe and healthy took a lot of worry off of all of our minds.

Thursday morning, I asked Shelley what her prior training was and how she knew to do the exact thing that was needed by this child when she had only been working for the school for 2 days. She told me that she was trained in medical assisting and transcription and had been looking for a job in that field. When nothing opened up, she took the job offered by the school. She also stated that it was her plan to continue on to her nursing degree. We were all amazed how this sweet lady was brought into our presence at a time that meant she could help with this incident. We were very proud of her and grateful that God had placed her in the exact spot she needed to be to help the sweet baby in the infant room.

On Friday, Shelley announced that she had been offered a job in the medical field in a local clinic that specializes in emergency medicine...the job she had been waiting for for so long. It was then that it occurred to me that God was so faithful to allow her to be with us for that ONE week, possibly only for the express purpose of helping save the life of a 6 month old baby who had barely begun to live. It is something I will never forget...as I'm sure those I work with as well as the child's parents won't forget either. Miracle #2!!!