Miracle Bracelet

A few years ago, sometime in April 2013, my son gave me a Pandora bracelet as an advanced birthday gift.

I don’t wear it regularly for fear of losing it. I’ve lost so many bracelets in the past and some were very expensive. I get so sad each time I lost a bracelet so I stopped buying and stopped wearing . I still have two or three but I don’t wear them anymore. Baka mawala lang.

When I was traveling to the US in summer of last year (April 2016), I decided to wear it. I didn’t use it every day during my stay in the US for the same reason, the fear of losing it. I value everything that my children give me. Even if it’s just a tiny plastic toy or a drawing. For the mother, they are priceless so I am so scared to lose them.

When I came back to Manila sometime in June 2016, the first thing that I did was to place the bracelet on an empty glass bowl located on my bathroom counter.

I lock my bathroom every time I leave the house. I just do the cleaning. But once in a while I let the maids in to do some thorough cleaning.
One day, I noticed that the bracelet disappeared. I didn’t think that someone could have gotten it. I wasn’t sure where it was. I just stared at the empty glass bowl feeling confused. Syempre marami akong iniisip sa buhay, madalas akong makakalimutin. I kept thinking maybe I left it in the US, or I hid it in my jewelry container. But I knew I did not. I was quite certain that I placed it in that re-purposed glass bowl. Days and weeks passed. I looked at every possible place that I thought baka dun ko inilagay. Pero ang alam ko, dun sa glass bowl ko sya ipinatong. I couldn’t find it. When I asked my daughter, she told me I brought it to the US. I was relieved.
When I went back to the US in October, I didn’t find the bracelet. My suspicion grew that it was really in that glass bowl.

When I came home, I looked around again. I kept thinking where my bracelet went.
I couldn’t tell my son that I’ve lost his gift. I was already planning of contacting his female friend who was with him when he purchased the Pandora bracelet. I was going to ask her to accompany me to buy an exact replacement.

I told my husband and Oyen that the bracelet most likely disappeared from the glass bowl, they were convinced that it could have been taken by one of our maids. Our maids come and go and we would no longer be able to identify specifically who although Edmund narrowed it down to three people who were our maids during that month when I came home from the US. They were the most likely suspects pero mahirap magbintang.

I thought of contacting the 3, sending someone to go to their house and get the bracelet. Of course the person would never admit and most likely by this time had sold or pawned it.

On certain nights I would go to bed thinking about the bracelet. I didn’t want my son to know that I have lost it. I would imagine all sorts of scenarios— I am walking in the mall and I bumped into the maid wearing my bracelet and I would get it back.

I didn’t want to get emotional about the loss but it was always at the back of my mind. As the days passed, the more certain I became that I really placed it on top of my bathroom counter.

I was becoming agitated about the loss. I was both in denial that it’s already lost and at the same time, there’s an acceptance that it’s now somewhere out there in another person’s arm. Still, there’s that lingering hope that one day my bracelet would just show up.

Two nights before we were leaving for UK, I went to bed at past midnight. As soon as I laid my head on my pillow, I prayed to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
I said “alam ko ho wala na yung bracelet, baka ibinenta na. But miracles can still happen. I am sorry I am going to ask for the impossible, pwede ho bang paki kuha nyo yung bracelet and bring it back to me?”.
I was actually a little bit embarrassed and apologetic for making that large and impossible imposition to the Virgin Mary. For passing on to her the responsibility of finding my bracelet. It was my fault that I didn’t take care of it.

That same night, I also called on Saint Philomena and Saint Anthony, the patron saint of lost objects. I asked for their help to bring my bracelet back to me. I was asking for a miracle. Basta na lang lumitaw dito yung bracelet ko. I prayed and wished for it to just suddenly show up.

Two days later, I was in my bathroom. I was subconsciously looking at my things. I stared at the glass bowl. I knew I placed it there. Then for some reason, I started opening my drawers with no particular reason.
When I opened the first drawer, I told myself “wala dito, I never put jewelries here”. Then I just kept going. I opened the second drawer while telling myself “ano ba ang hinahanap mo? wala yan dito, nagsasayang ka lang ng oras at pagod”. I knew it was a waste of my time and an exercise in futility but I didn’t know what was happening to me. My hands just kept going. I opened the third drawer. And of course wala dun. I closed it. Then I stood there for a few seconds. Basta there was something which I couldn’t explain. Paalis na ako, nakabihis na ako, pero I lingered infront of my bathroom mirror / counter. I opened the third drawer again and I looked under the assorted items in the drawer while my mind was saying, wala naman yan dito, never ka nagtago ng valuable dito sa drawers. For some reason I extended my hand and reached the farthest end of the drawer. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I found my Pandora bracelet.

How did it get there?

I couldn’t think of any reason other than it was brought back to me by a miracle. Although my request was too large an imposition, the heavens granted my request. I found my bracelet.

Thank you so much Blessed Virgin Mary.
Thank you Saint Philomena.
Thank you Saint Anthony.
Thank you Our Lady of Manaoag.
Thank you St. Ursula.
Thank you to all the angels and saints who helped me find my bracelet.