It’s late night. She’s driving an empty highway. The radio is playing something lively. She’s heading toward South Carolina. A new life. A new job. A new town.

She’s got a lot going for her. She’s fresh out of college, smart, ambitious, she comes from a good family, she’s got all the support she can stand.

She’s giddy about her new job. She starts on Monday. She’ll get her own office, good benefits, the whole enchilada. She’s wondering where life is going to take her next, and she’s feeling pure excitement.

She doesn’t see the deer jump in front of her. All she hears is the sound of crunching.

It’s over fast. She smashes into a guardrail, her vehicle tumbles a few times. There is blood in her vision, but she’s not hurt—it’s a miracle.

Her car is wrecked, she’s stuck in a ditch, but she’s alive with no broken bones. She tries to crawl out of the vehicle, but the door is jammed.

That’s when she hears something. Footsteps in the brush. A man crawls into her vehicle through the shattered windshield. He pulls her free.

Her new friend says, “You’re gonna be alright.”

It’s dark. They hike toward the highway to flag a car down. When she gets to the road, the man is gone.

Here’s another:

Bill has cancer. It started as a skin problem on his back. It grew fast. It spread. Doctors operate and cut it out.

After the invasive procedure, he lies on a hospital bed, subjected to lethal doses of daytime television.

Bill is sad. He has no wife, no children, no immediate family to visit him. He’s never felt as alone as he does today.

Then.

He sees a child, standing by the open door. He doesn’t know how the boy got in. Only friends and family are allowed to visit—Bill has neither.

The kid must be about ten or eleven. He is by himself, dark skinned, wearing a white T-shirt and jeans.

“Who’re you?” Bill says.

The child answers, “I’m here for you, Bill.”

Bill falls asleep. When he wakes, the kid is gone. That was ten years ago. Bill is still cancer free.

One more:

His wife is pregnant with a child. There are complications. She has the baby prematurely. The child has a weak heart. He lasts two years.

The death is a shock. He and his wife mourn so hard, they aren’t sure they’ll ever recover. And they don’t—at least not together. They divorce. He moves out, she gets the house.

One day, he is at a jobsite, running electrical wire in a pine-framed building. There is an elderly man who shows up. The man looks homeless—long beard, layered clothes, gaunty.

They start talking. The old man is friendly. In the middle of their conversation, the old man says, “I think you oughta go back to your wife.”

The young man just stares at him. “How’d you know I was married?”

The man simply wanders away.

After work, he calls his wife. She tells him that her sister has just died this morning. She is a wreck, she needs him.

He hops a flight to be with her. He stays with her through the worst. And he stays after that, too.

After fourteen years they’ve made a beautiful life for themselves. They are the proud parents of twin girls.

Listen, I don’t know what you’re facing today. Maybe it’s something bad. Maybe it’s not a big deal. Maybe, it’s a late car insurance payment. Maybe it’s something fatal. Maybe it’s something worse.

Well, I don’t have any knowledge on how the universe works. I don’t know anything about the nature of life, and you have no reason to care about a word I say. But if you’ve read this far, there’s something I want to tell you.

You are never alone.

That’s not an opinion.

55 comments

  1. Rogene Martin - May 28, 2019 8:33 am

    Truth, even from depths , you are not alone..

    Reply
  2. Steve Bailey - May 28, 2019 9:39 am

    beautiful.

    Reply
  3. Meredith Smith - May 28, 2019 9:40 am

    Dear Sean, I have been vacillating whether to ask you via your IG account for prayers for my mom. I have been crying for days since her recent stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis which has metastasized to her kidney. She is having a PET scan this Friday which may/may not bring more bad news. You always have a certain way of finding the right words to calm the heart. Well even through my tears I think you found the right words. Thank you Sean.

    Reply
    • Karen - May 28, 2019 11:32 am

      Meredith, I am praying for your mother right now. Please know you are not alone.

      Reply
    • Terri Boykin - May 28, 2019 12:18 pm

      Lifting your mother and you up in prayer Meredith. God bless you.

      Reply
    • Jody - May 30, 2019 1:46 am

      Praying

      Reply
  4. CaroG87 - May 28, 2019 9:52 am

    No we are not. We are so never alone.

    Reply
  5. Joyce Mullikin - May 28, 2019 10:17 am

    You’re so right. God is always with us.

    Reply
  6. Ric - May 28, 2019 10:36 am

    ?

    Reply
  7. S. Dukes - May 28, 2019 10:46 am

    Cannot tell you, yes I can, how much I enjoy your stories everyday!!! Today was meaningful!!! Thanks and I will look forward to tomorrow!!!!

    Reply
  8. Amanda - May 28, 2019 10:59 am

    Thank you, Sean. I needed this reminder at just this moment!

    Reply
  9. Sharon - May 28, 2019 11:08 am

    Beautiful simply beautiful and so very true!

    Reply
  10. Jan - May 28, 2019 11:22 am

    Beautiful and so very true! Thank you!

    Reply
  11. Joe Patterson - May 28, 2019 11:33 am

    Thanks again

    Reply
  12. Karen - May 28, 2019 11:33 am

    Amen.

    Reply
  13. Dottie - May 28, 2019 11:46 am

    Thank you Sean. Well timed. Well timed.

    Reply
  14. Tom - May 28, 2019 11:48 am

    Lovely stories of how God works in our lives. Do you believe that God is there for you, Sean? HE certainly is and God is also the one who controls the Universe!

    Reply
  15. Becky - May 28, 2019 12:28 pm

    Perfect. A writer you are. A good writer you are. And a good person, too.

    Reply
  16. Susan - May 28, 2019 12:41 pm

    Sean,

    Are these stories true? I have cancer and would like to know.

    Reply
    • Pat - May 29, 2019 2:19 pm

      Susan I don’t know if these stories are true or not, but I do believe they are, as I have experienced things before that I could not understand or explain. I will be praying for you.

      Reply
  17. David - May 28, 2019 12:45 pm

    We are one, united in spirit. Looking, searching for the good in humanity. Thank you for the shared moments of laughter, pondering, and yes, sometimes tears. Meredith, I have walked your path before. Sending you my strength and prayers.

    Reply
  18. Steve - May 28, 2019 1:03 pm

    Perfect timing. Good job.

    Reply
  19. Shelton A. - May 28, 2019 1:09 pm

    God and his angels are always with us (sometimes angels walk on two feet and we can see them).

    Reply
  20. Fred Funches - May 28, 2019 1:26 pm

    WOW!

    Reply
  21. MermaidGrammy - May 28, 2019 2:05 pm

    Thank you. Neither are you

    Reply
  22. Tina Harman - May 28, 2019 2:53 pm

    Thank you for this, Sean. Always know that you have a gift that you are sharing with all of us. Yes, God is always with us, and His angels are among us.
    Thank you again.

    Reply
  23. Edna B. - May 28, 2019 3:16 pm

    You’re absolutely right! There are angels everywhere watching us and helping us through the dark times. I loved today stories. You have a wonderful day, hugs, Edna B.

    Reply
  24. Mary T. - May 28, 2019 3:41 pm

    She needed surgery but because of other complications it was risky. She talked to a man in the waiting room. Her husband, who was waiting downstairs was approached by a man who told him his wife would come through the surgery. She did. I loved her so much! She was with us several more years.

    Reply
  25. Debbie Britt - May 28, 2019 3:47 pm

    I needed to hear this today!❤️

    Reply
  26. Tim House - May 28, 2019 4:02 pm

    Whoa… That gave me chills. And there are many other stories like that out there. Ghost, Angel, power of the mind? Who knows, but they happen.

    Reply
  27. Janet Mary Lee - May 28, 2019 4:04 pm

    Simply beautiful…simply true.

    Reply
  28. kathleenivy - May 28, 2019 4:36 pm

    Bless you Sean. Just what I needed. I am going to send this to my daughter now … she needs it too. Big hugs to you dear man.

    Reply
  29. Bette - May 28, 2019 4:58 pm

    “gaunty” ???

    Reply
  30. Darell Dunn - May 28, 2019 5:37 pm

    AMEN BROTHER !

    Reply
  31. Estelle - May 28, 2019 6:58 pm

    Meredith I just prayed for your mother and you. The Holy Spirit which dwells within us will strengthen you and comfort you.
    There are many stories like the ones you told today. Do not try to figure them out. Just accept them with thanks and praise.
    You write so beautifully so that good news or bad it helps that someone IS there.

    Reply
  32. Livy - May 28, 2019 7:08 pm

    Maybe your most beautiful post yet….Everyone needs to hear this at some point.
    Thank you for continuing to encourage and care for your readers.

    Reply
  33. Holly P - May 28, 2019 7:47 pm

    Sean – thank you for keeping your devine appointment and sharing this today as you were supposed to. Love you.

    Reply
  34. Dianne - May 28, 2019 9:28 pm

    We are never alone. God is always with us and shows his presence in so many and various ways. Thank you for sharing these awesome stories which prove His promise of He will never leave us.

    Reply
  35. Linda Moon - May 29, 2019 12:06 am

    I needed this today. This morning I had the first of two scans for what might be recurrence of cancer. These words are the footsteps in the brush, the child by the open door, and the scruffy old man/marriage counselor all rolled into one. I’ve faced down the cancer-demon three times since 2005. I care about your words, Sean Dietrich, and today you have made me feel not alone.

    Reply
    • Pat - May 29, 2019 2:10 pm

      I will be praying for you Linda.

      Reply
  36. Grace - May 29, 2019 12:14 am

    I do have a problem today. My grandson is being bullied at school. He started at this school 2 years ago and he is here because his parents got a divorce. I am worried and don’t know what to do. He is very depressed. Any suggestions? He is 16.

    Reply
  37. Brenda McLaine - May 29, 2019 1:55 am

    Great uplifting post.

    Reply
  38. Jack Darnell - May 29, 2019 2:59 am

    This read makes for a good visit. Thanks. I am blessed, I have never felt alone.
    Sherry & jack

    Reply
  39. Edy - May 29, 2019 12:02 pm

    Encouraging words give hope. Thank you

    Reply
  40. Pat - May 29, 2019 2:08 pm

    I truly believe that we get a glimpse of “the other side”. The memory of the experience stays with you and gives you comfort.

    Reply
  41. Sabina - May 29, 2019 3:24 pm

    Thank you! Reading this after a loving kindness meditation is a perfect beginning to this day!

    Reply
  42. Linda Moon - May 29, 2019 9:19 pm

    I had the second scan today. I thought of this post from yesterday (May 29th) all during the procedure. And then, I thought of my daddy and how my son once channeled my daddy’s nickname for me: “Schnickelfritz.” My son never met his granddaddy, and the story of how that nickname revealed itself to my son is too long to tell. But the comfort of my remembrance of that nickname from granddad to a never-seen grandson let me know that in spite of not knowing outcomes, or the universe for that matter, that I, Schnickelfritz, AM NOT ALONE. Thank you also to those who replied and are praying. And, thank you, Sean. I care very much about each word you say.

    Reply
  43. Linda Moon - May 29, 2019 10:37 pm

    Sean of the South’s post, FRIENDS, was dated May 28th, not 29th. My reply was posted as May 29, just after midnight. The date of my first scan (for those of you might be interested and/or confused) was actually yesterday. Today, 29th, was the second one. Anyway, both FRIENDS and THE MAGAZINE were words I needed and enjoyed, as well as the replies of prayers. The virtual timekeeper for posts is not on my Central Time Zone, apparently,
    (though I do often stay up past midnight as many other post-ers seem to,too,or is it just the unknown keeper of the time?!)

    Reply
  44. Annie Walsh - May 31, 2019 5:01 pm

    Thank You for all you do!

    Reply
  45. Sharon P. Campbell - June 1, 2019 10:22 pm

    tHANKS jOAN ! So good to hear from you. I know I am not alone but so good to have it reinforced from a very special lady !

    Reply
  46. Mary Ellen Hall - June 6, 2019 1:26 am

    This is SO VERY BEAUTIFUL Sean!!!
    I’m SO HAPPY to have received this today, because I have the PERFECT person who needs this RIGHT NOW!! ?
    THANK YOU!!

    Mary Ellen Hall

    Reply
  47. SmartmouthSLP - June 27, 2019 11:09 am

    Dang it, crying in my coffee right now. Beautiful.

    Reply
  48. Kathy Smith - June 27, 2019 8:43 pm

    Meredith, I’m praying for you and your Mother!

    Reply
  49. Martha Martin Black - June 28, 2019 12:52 am

    So true……….
    Not an opinion
    It’s peace……..

    Reply
  50. Steve W. - June 28, 2019 1:25 am

    Angels are all around us. God is always listening.
    Love you Sean.

    Reply

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