NEW YEARS EVE PHONE CALL

NEW YEARS EVE PHONE CALL

It was New Years Eve 2007, soon to be 2008 in just a couple of hours.  I had my work cut out for me.  A fire in my apartment building a few weeks before and all my belongings had gone to the dry cleaner that specialized in removing smoke from everything.   I was concentrating on separating everything for each closet, a long and tedious job I dreaded but it seemed the perfect time to get it done.

Suddenly the phone rang and I couldn't find the phone......it was buried under a heap of clothes.   When I finally found it and answered with the usual 'Hello?" I heard an unfamiliar voice say "Hello?" and it seemed neither of us heard a familiar voice.  I repeated my "Hello" and then he did the same.   Finally I asked what number the caller was dialing and he repeated my phone number!   I explained that he had the correct number which I have had for over thirty years, so I asked who he was trying to reach and he told me he was calling to wish his wife a Happy New Year.  I asked from where he was calling and he said Iraq!   Well, naturally I was taken aback and felt terrible for him that he could not reach his wife to offer his wishes for the holiday.

However, hearing where he was calling from I had other questions I wanted to ask.   What branch of the military, what state was he stationed out of, how long was he in Iraq and were there a significant number of troops at his location.  I explained that the reason I was asking all these questions was because I support our deployed troops with care packages.  We introduced ourselves and his name was David Young.  He was an electronics specialist with the Army and stationed out of Wash. DC with a Reserve Unit out of the DC Armory.   And here I was in Maryland, we were practically neighbors!   He told me there were several units at his location and I offered to take care of those soldiers with care packages if there was a need for them.   He said they were receiving very little mail and no packages at all.   Of course I was sitting there with a mile wide smile on my face, knowing that this call was not a coincidence at all........that only God could have arranged this 'wrong/right' phone number.

Those soldiers had another six months in Iraq and I was blessed to be able to bring much joy to them for the remainder of their deployment.   David was kind enough to take each box and deliver it to a different unit, and there were ten boxes that he shared with his brothers and sisters in arms.    We stayed in touch via the internet and with each care package I got a wonderful email telling me how thankful they were to be the recipients of boxes filled with non-perishable food, toiletries, socks and magazines from someone who did not know them at all.

As for reaching his wife that New Years Eve, I had suggested perhaps a different area code which he tried and actually did reach her that night as intended!   We corresponded for several months after he returned home but then he moved out of the area and we lost touch. I hope he and his family are well and healthy and happy where ever they are.   I do know that is one New Years Eve I will never forget.   Usually I have to reach out to obtain the contacts for the packages I ship.  This time the contact came to me.....via a phone call from Iraq!   Thank you Lord, once again, for connecting the dots, for connecting  David to me!