Patty’s Story

Have you ever wondered if miracles still happen? Well, I can’t speak for you, but I can tell you that Anne and I experienced a miracle that we very much appreciated. It revived my trust in the honesty and goodness of people. In fact, I know that the woman responsible for this miracle could have benefited financially by being dishonest and I would have been devastated.


This saga began on April 22, 2024, at the Queen Mary ocean liner docked in Long Beach, California. We had reservations to spend the night. We arrived at 5:00 and registered. The agent told us that, if we hurried, we had just enough time to see the engine rooms before they were closed for the night. We were super interested in seeing the old steam engines and inner workings of this amazing ship,  so we left our things in the car and went on a tour.


After the tour we were going to go out to the car to pick up our luggage, but the elevators were down and the repairman told us he would probably have them up and running in a short while. Not wanting to lug everything up all the stairs to our room,  we went to the restaurant for dinner, hoping the elevators would be repaired by the time we finished, but, alas, now there was an out of order sign and no repairman in sight. Anne found a porter and went out to the car to get our stuff. While putting things on the cart she noticed that my computer was not in the car and wondered if I had taken it without her realizing it. She called me to inquire whether or not I had it. I didn’t. When she told me it was missing, panic took center stage in my life, and I wanted to cry. 


I took off and immediately went down to the car to see if perchance she had missed something (common sense told me that she hadn’t, but I still wanted to check). I pulled everything out of the car and sure enough she was right, it was missing. Moments later Anne, realizing we had somehow missed each other in the hallways, rejoined me at the car and together we lamented the loss of my computer.


Neither of us could believe it, and this is when I made my infamous conclusion that someone had stolen it. We walked hand in hand to the security office to report it missing. The guard mentioned that the security cameras in that area were not functioning so they couldn’t promise us much in the way of help. We left their office more discouraged and distraught than ever.


I was sick at the thought of what was on that computer and what it meant to me. For the last ten years I have been writing family history stories, and I was compiling them to put into a book that I plan to publish later this year. I was in the process of updating, revising, editing, and rewriting those that had major problems. I had most of my work backed up, but I wasn’t at all sure how up to date my backup was. It felt like everything was gone, and now I think you get the picture of why I was sick.


There was nothing else I could do but offer a short prayer that I would be able to get my computer back. Almost as quickly as I had offered it the thought entered my mind, “There’s no way I will ever see my computer again.”


We accepted this fact and continued with our vacation. Two days later we were traveling along the Pacific Coast Highway and stopped to watch the sunset over the ocean. As we were walking back to the car, Anne noticed a piece of paper tucked away in the hollow between the windshield and the hood of the car. She reached in, unfolded it and found a note. It was from Patty, letting us know that she had found my computer and giving us her phone number to call. Believe me when I say we called post-haste. 


Because of her honesty and thoughtfulness, Patty is my hero! She didn’t have to leave a note on  our car, but she did.


As we visited with her on our phones, we learned that she was a woman who didn’t have much, but she did have a strong value of honesty. She sent us my computer and we sent her our thanks and added a reward to show our appreciation. She called us to tell us that we didn’t need to do that, but, as we talked about it, she came to see our gift of gratitude as God’s way of letting us be His hands to help her at that time in her life when she was struggling.


Perhaps you may be wondering how Patty got the computer in the first place. The computer wasn’t stolen as I had supposed, but rather I had unintentionally left it lying on the ground. You see, when Anne and I parked the car, I grabbed the computer to take it into the hotel room but then we decided to wait to unpack until after the visit to the engine room. I had obviously forgotten to put it back in the car, and Patty found it lying beside the car.


Two miracles happened. First, Patty found the computer and left a note letting us know how to reach her; and second, the note didn’t fly off and disappear while we were driving (after all it had been two days since we noticed it missing).


From this experience I was reminded that there are many good people around us who are willing to help when help is needed. I also learned that I was a little too quick to accuse someone of stealing my computer and that I need to be more aware of my actions. 


It’s a comforting feeling knowing that there are still honest people out and about. When we are busy complaining or telling each other about our troubles, let’s remember to share our positive experiences and the miracles of the day, big and little, with each other as well.



Happy Failing Forward,


Calvert Cazier