Angels Appointed to Watch Over Us

In 1972, I was in my first year of junior high school in Florida.

Our family had recently emigrated from Cuba.

I didn’t fit in culturally, linguistically, or in the way I dressed.

I felt very lonely. School anti-bullying programs did not exist in those days. In public school, you either sank or swam. That’s when I stumbled into mean-girl territory, and the bullying started. I was pushed, laughed at, and mocked for the way I talked and dressed. One day I received a “death sentence.” The bullying girls said, “Tomorrow morning, when you get to school, we’ll be here waiting for you.” What would I do? Run? Hide? Ask an adult to handle my problem? No, doing that would certainly paint a big bull’s-eye on my back. What other choice did I have? That evening at home, however, I learned about the power of angels watching over us. God gave me a new “sentence.” You see, Mom was a woman of faith. She loved her Savior and truly believed He watches over us with the deepest affection. Mom took me to her room, pulled open the top drawer of the small dark-green nightstand by the side of her bed, and took out her large, old Bible. She introduced me to the world of angels and God’s protective care over His earthly children. As Mom’s fingers traveled swiftly through the pages of her Bible, God’s promises became more and more real —and precious— to me.

I knew that my best weapons the next day were going to be the faith and the trust I’d place in the care of my heavenly Father.

When I arrived at school the following morning, those girls were already waiting for me. Half of them had placed themselves on one side of the door I had to walk through, while the rest stood on the other side, flanking the entrance.

No adults were supervising, and there was no turning back.

Then something inexplicable happened.

As I walked through the doorway, the girls stood in front of me as if in a trance. Unable to make a move or even speak, they just stood and watched in silence —as if seeing something or someone I could not see.

I’ve always believed they saw my guardian angel walking by my side that morning. I was never again victimized or bullied by these girls.

All bullying stopped, and I graduated from junior high school as a conqueror in the Lord.

Olga Valdivia