Seeing everyday miracles

Yesterday I received the gift of a small miracle. It didn't seem like a gift at first. Our front door handle broke, as in totally non-functional, can't-open-the-door broke.

I went to Home Depot with the broken handle in hand, and stood in the doorknob aisle looking at my choices. The only front-door handles like ours I could find included the deadbolt, etc, for $130. I was frustrated and wanted to ask for help but didn't see any employees nearby. I walked to the end of the aisle, and still not seeing anyone, quietly said, "Help" in a way that felt like a prayer, a request sent out.

A moment later, an employee walked by as I was holding the expensive set and I asked her if there was any way I could just buy the new handle. She said no.

Disappointed, I carried the expensive set, as well as a different style handle that was cheaper but was going to leave a hole in the door, toward the cash register. About four aisles away, a different employee asked me if I needed help. "I don't think so," I said. He asked if I realized I had two different brands of handle sets, and I explained the whole story.

He took a look at the handle, which had no brand markings on it, asked to see my house key, and said, "This is a Kwikset handle. They'll almost always replace them for free, even if you didn't buy it" (it came with the house we bought last spring).

Turns out this guy was a locksmith for 10 years. He looked up the model online, called Kwikset for me and handed me the phone. The company agreed to send me a free replacement and even waived the shipping charges. Then the Home Depot fellow, Matthew, took me back to the doorknob aisle and helped me find an $8 doorknob I could install just to have a working front door for the next few days.

Wow. Talk about an answered prayer! As my teacher Brenda says, miracles are normal!