Communications Coaching

Dick Seward

The Power of intention is often over-looked by many. I have a story that I haven’t shared with anyone up to this point. It is true. Those closest to me were there. My husband knows, he was driving the car. My mom knows…she was part of it. Now you will know. When you read this, I want you to think about how you create things in your life. I am sure when my dad said he was going to get Bobbi a dozen roses for her birthday, he never dreamed it would happen the way it did. I think it was the power of intention. When a person wants something and couples that want with emotion, somehow The Universe has a way of creating it. The power in this, of course, is learning to use it to serve you in the things you want in  your life.

Dad died on August 5, 2007. It was a beautiful death. The week before he died, he and my mother made the trek to Kearney, a small town nearby, to their doctor’s office. It was about 37 miles from their home in Lexington and it was a well traveled road for them.  That day in the doctors office it was business as usual and the nurse, Bobbi met them for their appointment. Mom and Dad loved Bobbi. She had been the nurse for their doctor for years and she always took good care of them.

Mom and dad had been married for 63 years. They were the usual patients at the hospital with the usual old people aches and pains. They lived in Kearney for years and had traded with local businesses even though they hadn’t lived there for over 20 years. Dad had abused his body over the years and was not only fighting Diabetes, he was in kidney failure as well. He had been on home dialysis and it was taking it’s toll on both he and mom. He was still positive and outward focused. He was always thinking of other people and not himself.

Bobbi met them with her usual cheerful smile and warm welcome. Dad knew it was her birthday in a week or so and he told mom he was going to bring Bobbie something special for her birthday. She laughed it off and didn’t think much of it.

When they got home dad turned to mom and said, “I am going to get Bobbi a beautiful dozen of red roses for her birthday.”

“You think so, huh? How are you going to do that? You don’t drive and roses are expensive!” My mother said.

“I don’t know how I am going to do it, I am just going to do it. I will make it happen, you just watch.” Dad said in his usual, I’ll show you manner.

Mom said that was it, there was no more talk of roses. In the days that followed, dad became ill and died.

I remember at the funeral the dozen red roses.  I don’t know anything about funeral etiquette and I suppose red roses are fine, I just don’t think I have ever seen any at a funeral except maybe on top of the casket. These roses looked like roses a young man would give a girlfriend. There was a dozen, long-stemmed, red roses with a big beautiful bow in a beautiful vase. I asked my sister who sent them. She said it was Jeri’s boyfriend, whom I didn’t know yet. Jeri was my niece and her new boyfriend most likely wanted to send something nice to let the family know he cared so…why not red roses? I didn’t think any more about it.

Once the funeral was over and burial was complete, we brought a few of the flower arrangements home and the red roses were one of them. I enjoyed the smell of them and their beauty for a couple of days and mentioned it to mom.

The day we were getting ready to leave as my husband, kids and I were climbing into the rental car all of a sudden my mom held up a finger and urgently said, “Michelle, wait! I want you to do something for dad.”

When she returned to our car she was carrying the vase with roses. I immediately thought she wanted me to take roses with me on the plane to Arizona and I began to strongly object.

“Mom, seriously, I can’t take those on the plane and even if I could, I don’t want to hold them the whole way.”

“No, listen to me.” She said.

“Um, okay. What?” I responded.

“Today is Dr. Vossik’s nurses’ birthday. Her name is Bobbi, you remember her?” She asked.

“Yes, I do remember her. What do you want me to do?” I asked. This is when the story rolled out and I realized that dad had once again made things happen, only this time it was from the grave! One last time he had created something from nothing! We took the dozen roses with us in the rental car and drove to Kearney, walked into the Dr.’s office and asked for Bobbi. When she came out, I think she knew. She started to cry as I shared the story with her.

“Dad wanted you to have a dozen roses for your birthday.” I said with tears streaming down my cheeks.

“He sure did know how to make things happen!” She said through big alligator tears.

“Yes he did.” I said as I handed the to her and gave her a hug. I turned to leave for the Omaha airport. “He surly did know how to make things happen!”

Note: What will you create today? Intention plus emotion creates your life. What are you putting emotion into?

Coach Michelle Shelton