I don't believe in miracles . . .

but stranger things have happened. So today was the second time in my life that I witnessed a natural phenomenon. It's even stranger that for the second time it happened at a cemetery. Moreover, on the one year anniversaries of each of my grandmothers' deaths. It was a lovely morning despite the cloud hanging over NYC and the predicted rain. Despite agreeing that nobody will go to the cemetery before Sunday to mark the opening of the monument, I went. I had to. Plus, I never listen. As soon as I picked up the Yahrzeit candles and got into the car it began to drizzle, but rain never scares me so I kept driving. I drove through a mix of sun and rain all the way to the cemetery. By the time I got off the highway, it was pouring. Cemeteries in the rain are freaky and as I came up to the "street" where my grandmother's monument is, it was a complete downpour. I wasn't sure what to do, but I couldn't turn around now. I waited a few minutes squinting to find the monument. I made a U-Turn so that it would be on my left and not right side. I rolled up my white linen pants, grabbed an umbrella and walked out of the car. The rain eased up. I quickly found the monument and said my prayers. The rain stopped. It was unbelievable, but given New York weather recently, not shocking. I walked back to the car and got out the Yahrzeit candle. I lit it and put it on the monument covering the wax with rocks so that it wouldn't go out from the wind. The birds started chirping. I said another prayer. I got in the car and stopped by the main entrance to wash my hands. There was no rain, the sun came out again. I got back in the car hoping for a quick ride home and as soon as I passed through the gates of the cemetery, it began to pour. I'm not talking about a drizzle, I'm talking about a downpour. It was raining so hard that going about 7 miles an hour I had zero visibility. It rained most of my way home. Now, it's sunny.

There are things greater than us out there. I believe that. This wasn't a coincidence. I believe that too. Neither was August 5, 2003 when only during the prayer the sun hid behind clouds, the wind picked up and it looked like it was going to pour any minute. As soon as the prayers were sad, the clouds parted and gave way to the beautiful August day. Natural phenomena? Divine intervention? Miracle? Whatever it was, it gave me a lot to think about on the ride home.