UNIVERSAL TRANSLATOR

God reveals himself in mysterious ways.  If you pay attention, you may hear his voice. 

A baby was drowning in the pool.  Why was I the only one to jump in?

By Escott Brostrom, Rock Island, Illinois

On a hot summer sunday afternoon, my wife and I had been invited to a swimming party at the home of some friends. With our two children in the care of my grandmother, Cherie and I felt as free as the breeze.  As I stood on the diving board, I paused to look up into the serene sky. But then a frantic voice rose above the party din.  At the far end of the pool a woman was screaming. “the baby!” I heard her cry. “he’s at the bottom of the pool!” No one was doing anything to help. People just stood and stared at her. Confused, I searched the length of the pool and saw what I thought might be a motionless form beneath the water.  I dived in—and a baby was there. I hurriedly swept him off the bottom and soon laid him on the deck.  He’d turned blue…no breath. I began CPR.  Dear God, help me do it right. At last the little boy coughed. a short breath came, then another. he would live. An ambulance was called, for safety’s sake. While we waited, I couldn’t help asking the others, “Why did you ignore the woman when she said the boy was drowning?” A friend answered, “none of us understood her, scott.” “What do you mean? even at the far end I could hear her yelling about the baby.” “But she’s Mexican. none of us understood her Spanish.” “Spanish? I heard her yell in English.” “We didn’t. All we heard was Spanish.” “It’s true,” said the woman’s daughter. “Mama can’t speak a word of English.” “And I don’t understand a word of Spanish,” I said.