The Umbrella

Most summers when my children were young, we went to the local village fete with all sorts of fun activities, rides, and stalls.

Here in the United Kingdom, the weather in June can be a shade unpredictable, and to say we are prone to the occasional heavy shower of rain can be a slight understatement. One summer day, we had only just arrived at the fete when the heavens opened and it began to rain. My three children were still quite young, and I wondered how we would keep dry. Should we leave and return to the car? How sad they would be if we did. My middle daughter, Verity, wanted to have a go on the tombola despite the rain that trickled down her face! As children sometimes are, she seemed oblivious to the rain and asked for the money to buy a ticket. With tombola, you pick from a bucket of folded tickets, and if you pick a ticket with a good number on it, you can choose a prize.

To my thrill and amazement, she came running back within minutes, clutching a large umbrella. “Look, Mummy! Look what I’ve got us,” she said as she passed me the umbrella. She had chosen not only a winning ticket but also just the right prize. I am sure God was looking over us, knowing we needed an umbrella, and this was His way of providing exactly what we needed through Verity on that June day.

There are many special memories of our summer days, but this one stands out as one of my favorites. Now, years later, whenever I think of the fetes, I smile and think of the umbrella and how special that was —the perfect provision and timing God made complete through my daughter.

Thank You, Father, for caring and meeting all our needs, both small and large, especially when it is in such a lovely way as through our children. Amen!

Laura A. Canning