This was the last book I did in the Monastery. It is available on Amazon either as a Paperback or Kindle. All paperback sales go to support the monastery while the Sisters have graciously allowed Kindle sales to go to me.

My Kitchen Prayer

by Maria M. Fabro Buttonwood Bay, Belize

Ever since being saved, I have been a person of much deep prayer both day and night. I try to attend Mass as much as possible since we live five minutes away from church. I read my Bible regularly and I play my songs of worship every now and again when I am alone at home. I can remember that ever since I lived with my aunt after my stroke, I cooked for her children, her husband, and my son.

One morning, while I was cutting up the chicken to prepare lunch, I discovered that the knife was dull. Since only my left hand had the strength to cut this chicken, I was devastated.

I remembered when I was in Guatemala, that there were men who went around blowing their flutes and shouting, “Do you need to sharpen your knives? We sharpen knives and scissors.”

I said to myself, “Oh God, if only one of those men would pass right now, that would be so good. I could get my knife sharpened and our scissors too. I would use my little money from my pension to pay for it because my aunt does not even have a knife sharpener and I just cannot cut this chicken. The children need to eat when they get home from school. What could I do, Oh God?”

My mind was filled with my own self-pity and my dull knife when I heard the exact same flute all the way from Guatemala in our own little country of Belize!

I heard the flute but I couldn’t believe it was one of those men from Guatemala. It took me about two minutes to get myself to the door and check if what I heard was really true. By the time I got to the door, because I walk with a limp, the man I saw looked exactly like the ones from Guatemala with their equipment to sharpen knives, but he was already turning the lane across the street. I cried out to him but he did not hear me, so I cried out to God, “Oh God, I was so stupid for not checking immediately, please send him back, please?”

I went back to fighting with the chicken when in about five minutes, I heard the whistle again. This time with a big smile on my face, I strutted as fast as I could to the door. I stopped the man. He set up his equipment and started sharpening my knife and scissors.

What a view for all my neighbors. They all stared as if it was the first time they had seen this man as well. I was so happy. The man spoke Spanish. He charged me $16.00. I gave him a $20.00 bill. He didn’t have change, so he asked me in Spanish where was the nearest shop. I pointed one out to him. He went to change the money leaving his equipment with me. When he returned, he gave me my change and bid me a good day. That was the first and last time I saw one of those men or heard his whistle in Belize.
Was this man an angel of God, sent to me when I was in real need of help? Of course, I thanked my Heavenly Father and Jesus right away. All I knew was that the food was ready for the kids when they got home from school for lunch.