On my thirteenth birthday, I received a colorful and fun gift. The toy was a plastic bubble filled with gumballs. Levered arms controlled by buttons on the outside allowed the user to capture the gumballs like an arcade claw machine. I was thrilled. I took it to my room, retrieved my first few gumballs, stuffed my mouth with gum, and then. . . . I heard a catastrophic "snap!" A crucial part had broken. Being cheap plastic it could not be repaired.

I can't fix that.

My father had major life-saving surgery in 1963. They replaced his aorta from his heart down into the groin with some type of dacron material. Over the next twelve years, he'd have several more surgeries to repair the repair, including the eventual loss of a leg. Finally, they told my mother they couldn't fix it any more. My father passed away in 1975. I was fifteen.

I can't fix that.

Throughout your childhood, you were taught to live within the guidelines governed by your parents, teachers, and others. As you matured, you may have become stuck in the monotony of routine and caught in the expectations of others where. . .

. . . you lost the freedom to be you,

. . . you pushed your dreams aside, and

. . . true happiness felt unreachable.

I am still kind of shaking my head in disbelief. But let me take you back to a few days.

It was a very cold, nerve-racking day. My youngest of two sons had just been through spinal fusion surgery. Two hours away, my husband sat at his bedside. He messaged about his struggles between finding food on a holiday weekend during a minor blizzard and updates on my son's condition. (He came through fine.) A series of almost unbelievable events were about to occur, the first taking place hours earlier.

Home alone, pacing the floor in concern over my son's pending surgery, I asked God for a sign — anything — to help me ease my worries and fear. My son had a lot riding on this surgery. So much seemed pitted against it, including the weather. But hubby got him there without incident, and once there, they awaited prep to begin. 

I wanted to share a story I thought you'd find insightful, but before I do, I first need to give a little background.

Last year, I participated in a program where one of the speakers was Dr. Richard "Dick" Schwartz, the founder of Internal Family Systems (IFS). (My psychologist says there are several similar methods.) 

If you've never heard of IFS, on a very general level, it works as follows. On occasion, you may have heard yourself say, "a part of me ___ (wants / feels / needs / thinks)," after which, you may not have given that "part" of you any thought. However, in IFS, you are taught to catch yourself saying that (or feeling that) and you give this little "part of you" a persona. For me, that persona is often a little child, but, as you will see, it can take on any form. You can do this with any feelings, sensations, or emotions you may have.

You've been working long hours in an understaffed, underpaid environment. You're reliable and hardworking. More than anything, you'd like a little recognition for the work you do. A raise in pay wouldn't hurt either. But then, the boss announces a cut in staff—luckily it's not you—and he states that no pay raises will be offered this term to cut costs.

I have a favorite prayer for situations just like this. . .

(Address the Divine in whatever way is right for you and say. . . )

"Lord God of Heaven and Earth,
make a way where there is no way."

You can leave this prayer open-ended, watching and waiting for a change in your situation—as this small phrase opens your mind to the simple belief there is, indeed, a way to resolve your issue that you cannot conceive.

Or. . . 

Throughout my life, I've met some amazing healers. I don't mean the kind that boasts on a website with testimonials left by their bbf and ex-mother-in-law. I mean amazing individuals, people who often live in the background while doing the work they came here to do—help us heal. And, they not only heal other people, some use their gifts to heal animals, plants, and the Earth itself.

Of course, there are the famous healers, those who have been on tv or who have written books—rightfully celebrities. And while their works are wondrous and much talked about, their services are rarely available for the average person like you or me. Thus, it's the unknown healers, those who work in the background, who are the angels' unaware—the Invisible Healers.