The Fingerprints Were There All Along

Part 2

The school year wasn't easy.

Could we do it again if we had to? Absolutely.

Would we choose to?

Let's just say... only if God personally called and confirmed it with a burning bush. 😂

Homeschooling wasn't just school for us.

It became a full-time balancing act.

Melody has dyslexia, and spending an entire school day on a computer simply wasn't how she learned best.

So, every lesson became... well... two lessons.

First, I had to learn it.

Then I had to figure out how to teach it in a way that made sense for her.

Meanwhile, I was also juggling my own college classes, helping my other kids with their schoolwork, keeping the house running, and trying to remember whether I had already reheated my coffee three times or four.

Some days were beautiful. Some days were exhausting. Most days were both.

But through it all, we kept telling ourselves the same thing.

"It's just for this year." "Next year you'll be back."

That hope carried us. Until it didn't.

When we were told Melody was going back on the waitlist, I honestly didn't know what to say.

How do you explain something you don't understand yourself?

We had watched other families receive their spots.

We had been reassured there would be room.

Everything seemed to point toward "yes."

Instead...

We heard "wait." Again.

As her mom, I hated seeing the disappointment on her face.

I wanted answers. I wanted reasons. I wanted to understand what God was doing.

But even in the middle of our confusion, something was different this time.

We had peace.

Not because we knew the outcome.

But because we knew the One holding it.

So, we kept praying. We kept trusting. We kept placing one foot in front of the other.

Then one afternoon, Melody surprised me.

"Mom..." 

"Can I advocate for myself?"

I honestly wasn't expecting that question.

She asked me who she could talk to.

The only person I could think of was the superintendent.

So, my sweet girl sat down and handwrote a letter.

She poured out her heart.

She wrote about what the school meant to her.

How much she missed it.

How much she had grown over the past year.

When I read that letter...

I cried.

Not because it was heartbreaking. Although parts of it certainly were.

I cried because I saw something I hadn't noticed before.

God wasn't just preparing a place for Melody.

He was preparing Melody.

Right there in front of me was a little girl learning to take disappointment, process it with grace, and courageously speak from her heart.

Even more than that...

She was learning to trust God with the outcome.

She personally handed that letter to the superintendent.

Then we prayed. And we left it there. No backup plans.

No trying to force doors open ourselves.

Just trust.

The days passed. The waiting continued.

Then came the last day of school.

I remember talking with one of the teachers about Melody and telling her how proud I was of everything she had accomplished that year.

We went home. Life felt... ordinary.

Then, out of nowhere, I had one of those little nudges that I have learned not to ignore.

"Check your email."

So, I did.

And here's where I have to laugh.

The day before, I had prayed one of those very specific prayers that only God and I were in on.

"Lord... if You could let us know by Thursday, that would be amazing."

"...Okay... Friday at the absolute latest."

Because apparently, I thought giving the Creator of the universe my preferred deadline was a reasonable idea. 😂

But isn't it funny how our heavenly Father lets us bring Him those prayers anyway?

He isn't offended by our honesty.

He welcomes it.

As I opened my inbox... Ping.

A new email arrived. From Admissions.

I opened it. Read it once. Read it again.

Because surely, I had misunderstood.

But I hadn't.

Melody had been accepted.

I ran to find her. Before I could even finish telling her the news, tears filled both of our eyes.

Then my favorite part happened.

She thanked God.

Not me. Not the school.

God.

The very God she had been learning to trust all year long.

And because our God has a sense of humor that rivals my own...

The acceptance came just two days before the cheer deadline.

Talk about cutting it close.

I guess God was reminding me once again that while I prefer early...

He specializes in right on time.

Just when I thought the surprises were over...

The mail arrived.

And inside was something neither of us had expected...

Apparently, God wasn't finished reminding me that His timing is perfect...

Because just when I thought the surprises were over, He had one more waiting in the mailbox.

I'll meet you there in Part 3.

Until then, keep looking for His fingerprints.

With grace,

Raquel 

"So the Lord must wait for you to come to Him so He can show you His love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for His help." (NLT)