Angels Come in Every Shape and Color
"There are always angels everywhere. Perhaps we only think to look for them at Christmas when their wings can be seen, when their halos glow with light. But they are always there. There in the quiet corners, there in the shadows, there in their ordinary clothes and they are beautiful. Make room for the angels for they will catch you unawares and fill your heart in ways you never could imagine."
Jennifer Worth
We were having a cold, wet December. The year was 1980, and I was working for a Spanish language TV station in Paterson NJ. I had gotten the job as Assistant Controller a few weeks prior, but in the interim, between my hire date and my start date, my supervisor had been dismissed. Although they honored my employment contract, the job duties would not truly exist until they filled the controller’s seat. Weeks went by and I sat and literally shuffled papers from one side of my desk to the other – all day long, waiting for the real job to start.
Anita Hernandez, the previous controller’s secretary was a beautiful woman. I Remember she was tall and elegant and her skin was porcelain white with freckles that matched her red hair. I was quite surprised when she told me she was from Puerto Rico, but she was. She was a kind person, and we became instant buddies. She was always giving me menial jobs to do, just to keep me from dying of boredom or falling asleep at my desk. You might say she was a bright light in my otherwise dreary workday.
One day, as I was going to the ladies’ room, she asked, “So, how far along are you, Angela?” I tried not to laugh at the question – I was (so) not pregnant! I answered, “I’m not pregnant, Anita.” She, in turn, did not hide her laughter and said, “Oh yes – you are!” Imagine my facial expression… I began to wonder if she was crazy, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt and I asked, “What makes you think that I could possibly be pregnant?” She realized at that moment that I really believed I was NOT pregnant and now it was her turn to looked bewildered. She said, “Honey, this is your fourth trip to the ladies’ room this morning and your face, well …. need I say more?” I giggled all the way to the bathroom – after all, Peter and I were using the “Rhythm Method”! I couldn’t possibly be pregnant!
Lo and behold, a few weeks later, Anita’s premonition proved accurate. She was so proud of herself … and I was so nauseous - all the time!
A few weeks later, I was driving home from work. Again, it was a dreary, rainy, ‘New Jersey in December’ kind of evening - it was cold, dark and remember, I was in my first trimester. As I was approaching the light at the bottom of the hill and about to turn left to go under the overpass, my red Fiat 128 stalled out and would not start up again! I only knew how to get it restarted if I could get it rolling down a hill and pop the clutch, so there I sat - cold, wet and a bit frightened. Paterson was not a good place to get stuck back then, much less for a skinny young thing like me.
I looked up and I saw three men approaching my car from the right side and I had to decide – Do I trust them? Did I have a choice? As if out of nowhere, another group of 3 men appeared from the left, coming from under the overpass. This group was wearing red berets and got to me faster than the first group. I rolled my window down slightly and one of them spoke and said, “Lock your doors and do not open your passenger side window!” I turned and noticed that the first group of men had left the scene. One of the guys in red berets said, “We will push you up the hill and then you should be able to start your car as you roll down the other side. Do you know how to do this?” I said, “yes”, trembling a bit. - They were true to their word and I was able to pop my clutch and start my car as it rolled down the other side of the hill. I turned to thank them, but they were gone, disappeared, as if into thin air.
I went home, still a bit shaken, and told Peter my story. When I shared my story at work the next morning, I was asked if I knew who ‘those’ guys were. I said no, and was then informed that they were the “Guardian Angels”, a volunteer citizen assistance group that patrolled that area, and that I had been very fortunate. I felt fortunate -and- thankful -and- blessed and I said a prayer for the “Guardian Angels” that night.
I remember the events of December 1980 quite clearly. I remember finding a much-needed friend in Anita Hernandez, I remember how I found out I was pregnant, and of course, I remember my encounter with the “Guardian Angels”. I learned that angels come in every shape and color, and they show up in your life, exactly when you need them!