MYSTERIOUS WAYS | AUG/SEPT 2019 19
scared by the break-in and run off,
or she’d been stolen. I didn’t know
which was worse. I hated thinking
of her out there alone in the dark.
Or with criminals who had goodness
knows what plans for her. Tears
poured down my cheeks.
The police arrived and made their
report. After they left, I shut myself in
our room. I just couldn’t bear to see
anyone. Over the next few days,
a reward for Teddy’s safe return was
set up by a local detective who’d
seen our story on the news. While
our friends and family searched
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in bed, crying my eyes out.
Three days after Teddy’s disap-
pearance, my mother called.
“Mija, you can’t just lock your-
self away,” she said. “Maybe this is
a sign. Maybe God is telling you
it’s time for a two-legged baby in-
stead of just a four-legged one.”
Although Gus and I had agreed
that we would discuss alterna-
tive options if we didn’t get pregnant
by the time I turned 40—a fast-
approaching deadline—I wasn’t so
sure. Truth be told, I worried what
becoming parents would do to our
dynamic. We were happy now, but
our relationship hadn’t always been
this strong. Raising the tiny poodle
puppy, a gift from Gus, had helped
us reconnect.
Now, coming up on our twentieth
wedding anniversary, Gus and I were
stronger than we’d ever been. We
were comfortable, just the three of us,
and I wasn’t sure what a life with
children would look like. Still, Mom’s
words stuck with me. What if she
was right?
On Sunday, when Gus and I were
at church, one of the other parishio-
ners approached me. She said she’d
heard about Teddy and was praying
for her safe return, then added, “But
this could be God’s way of telling
you it’s time for a two-legged baby
instead of just a four-legged one.”