The Mulligan

It was that time of year when seniors select their new Medicare plan. Bill met with a representative and as usual had to go over his medical history. The last year was quite an eventful year. The most significant occurrence being the heart attack while winterizing his lake cottage. He had just finished putting in insulation held in place by concrete blocks around the base of the cabin when he had severe chest pains. A couple of months earlier he had chest pains which he assumed to be a strained chest muscle from bringing in the pier and thought the blocks may have done the same thing. He rested on the couch, then the bed, then a lounge chair, but nothing helped. He thought about calling 911, but the Fort Wayne hospital was over an hour away, and if he went there his wife would have to drive over 2 hours. He decided he would drive the 4 hours to Indy and the Community Health Hospital where his wife recently had a pace maker installed.

He still had to clean up and winterize the inside of the cabin as the temperatures were to drop into the 20’s during the next week. He finished inside, put the lawn mower and the grill in the shed, loaded the car with a few things and locked up.

Being a strong believer in God, Bill prayed as he drove that he would not lose consciousness or have a severe heart attack. He was born into a Christian family. His dad was a Baptist: his mother seldom went to church. She did, however, insist that the children and their father go to the Baptist church every Sunday. His grandfather and four other extended family members were Protestant ministers.

As is often the case, when Bill left home for college, he did not go to church and actually became an agnostic. Later he married a Catholic and went to church with his wife. As their three children grew older, Bill decided it was time to convert to Catholicism for the sake of the family. It was the day of initiation into the church that changed his life. It was not being blessed by the Bishop, but rather the lyrics from the song being sung during the ceremony, “I call you by name and you are mine.” It struck him that Christ was calling him specifically, as he seemed to be floating in God’s arms to the altar.

When he was in his forties, a second deeper conversion came when a friend asked him to make a Cursillo weekend. It was on this weekend that he made a commitment to God to study the Bible, which he reads daily, and give his life back to Christ.

He called his wife and told her to meet him at the hospital. Once there, they rushed him into surgery. He told the doctor that he always had energy and regularly did physical workouts. He could not understand why he would have a heart attack. The doctor asked when he felt the attack. Bill said, ”A little over four hours ago.” The next morning the doctor came in and said, “Yesterday we had three heart attack patients: one died, two survived, but one should not have. You had 100% blockage in your main artery, the widow maker. We can’t explain it, but maybe you had a chunk of plaque break away into your artery, which caused a blood clot.”

As Bill relayed this information to his Medicare representative, he was asked, “How did you lose your finger on your left hand.” Bill told him that he lost it when he jumped in the water off of a pontoon boat to save his daughter’s hat, which had blown off. His ring got caught on the door latch as he jumped and was still there with the skin when he hit the water. With the kids screaming, he calmly asked the Lord for a mulligan. (Save my finger). The Lord said, “No mulligan.”

At that point the insurance representative said, “So, have you figured out the mulligan?” Bill said, “No.” The rep. said, “God was saving your mulligan for your heart attack, while you wanted to use it for a finger.” Bill said” “You are right, I would have used it on the fourth hole, but He knew that I’d need the mulligan on the 16th hole of my life.”

God gave Bill his mulligan, and also knew when to use it.

As we relate this story we may see that we are wandering or have wandered in the first half of our life. Richard Rhor in his book Falling Upward says, we all must experience being lost before we can have a conversion. Trials and suffering enable us to relate to those who are lost because we have been there. We were being prepared to help others grow spiritually as they are awakened to the presence and Love of God.