Someone to watch over me

Whenever I’m pining for my grandson, Gabriel or “Gab,” all I have to do is log on to the Internet, and there he’d be smiling on the video camera, showing me the latest book he has read or the latest Lego puzzle he completed. When we’re done with his “Nonna” time, he puts his hands together, closes his eyes, and says a little prayer, “Thank you Jesus for a nice day... Angel of God my Guardian dearest…”  This always puts a smile on my face.  I picture a warm blanket being gently wrapped around Gab and soon, he will sleep soundly and dream away.  His Guardian Angel doubles as his night watch man with no coffee break or even a cookie for a snack.  Does he sleep?  Maybe not. He’d stay up and stay next to my grandson as he rushes through his breakfast and heads off to school. Another packed day of lessons, games, fun, homework and chores. Whew.  Do guardian angels ever get tired?  I hope not.

Once on a trip to Dubai with my friend Elsie Arce-Romero, she startled me by asking me a question, “Do you know the name of your Guardian Angel?”  With arched eyebrows, I replied, “No, do angels have names?”  “They sure do,” was Elsie’s reply.  She continued with the following instructions:  “Before you go to bed tonight, pray to your Guardian Angel and add at the end of your prayer, ‘may I know your name so that at least we’ll be on a first-name basis?’ Go to sleep and the next day, the first name that comes to your mind would be the name of your guardian angel. Go ahead, try it.”And I did.

The following day, a name did come to my mind.  It was “Ezekiel.”  How that name surfaced, I don’t know. Elsie, now wide awake, asked me, “What?  Did you ask for your angel’s name?”  I replied, “Yes, but my guardian angel is not a she but a he.  Can one have a male angel?”  Elsie blurted, “Of course!  In my case I even have two guardian angels!” (Note:  it was later on that I found out that all angels are male!) Can you believe that?  Here I am content and happy with one guardian angel who turned out to be a he, and here was Elsie with two.  But I’m not complaining. It’s just that I’m concerned that I might wear out “Ezekiel” or in some circumstances, make him work doubly hard, or demand for him to go scoot, when there’s enough to keep him on his toes, er, in his wings.

Another friend, Maritess Mendoza Pineda, sent me a card that included a daily prayer to the seven Archangels. All Archangels end with the “el” suffix.  ”El” meaning “in God” and the first half of the name meaning what each individual Angel specializes in. Archangels are able to be in many places at one time.  You never have to feel that your “problem” isn’t important enough to bother them with.  That is what they’re there for, to help you grow.  The prayer goes:”O seven Archangels, take me under your wings and watch over me.       

 Sunday — Archangel Michael (Prince of Heavenly Hosts). Prince of presence, lead me back to God’s eternal light.

Monday — Archangel Gabriel (God’s Messenger). God’s strength, bring me glad tidings of grace and gift of hope.  (Note: My grandson Gabriel “Gab” was named after this Archangel.)           

Tuesday — Archangel Rafael (God’s Healer). Companion and healer, hear my prayers and be my guidance and protector.            

Wednesday — Archangel Uriel (Angel of Justice).  Angel of salvation, help me to forgive and be forgiven.            

Thursday — Archangel Sealtiel (Angel of Worship and Contemplation).  Prayer of God, you who asked God to pray for us.            

Friday — Archangel Jhudiel (Mirror of God’s Merciful Love).   Hear my hallelujahs and hosannas, praise be to God.            

Saturday — Archangel Barachiel (Guardian and Provider of the Children of God).  Lightning of God, I pray to you for success and abundance. And for the grace to share my blessings.            

When I Googled “angels,” there were countless hits on it, some of which are:

“Angels transcend every religion, every philosophy and every creed. In fact, angels have no religion as we know it.  Their existence precedes every religious system that has ever existed on earth.” St. Thomas Aquinas says, “Angels are gifts given to us by God for our safety, protection, and guidance. Remember to ask God to send the angels to you, never forgetting to thank Him for this gift of angelic guidance.”And lest we forget, the Virgin Mary is the Queen of angels.  What a comfort to know that she too is rallying behind all the “rescue-protect-and-save” exercise and maneuverings that angels are tasked to do.     

There was a blaze that destroyed a residential area in Muntinlupa a couple of years ago and it was a painful experience for my household cook, Sheila.  She was there when the fire broke out right across from where their apartment was.  Power was disconnected so she groped for her cell phone hoping to save it before she dashed downstairs with her daughter and her nephew. Just when she thought she’d be able to retrieve her cell phone, she felt a force that pushed her and urged her to get out of their room before it actually caught fire.  She wasn’t able to save anything except for her purse. Visibly shaken and drained of color, she cried, “Ma’am, I’m so thankful that we’re alive.” Sheila was lucky.  Material possessions can be replaced by hard work and perseverance.  What is important is that they survived that catastrophe, safe and sound. When I told her to try and get a good night’s sleep, she remarked, “My Guardian Angel worked overtime again, ma’am.”

Thank God.