The Conjurer

My husband, Carl, is convinced he is a conjurer.  If something comes to pass, he insists he was just thinking about it. He has conjured a tick crawling on his leg, a sudden thunderstorm, an unsuspected perpetrator in a movie mystery, and many an unexpected visitor or phone call . . . according to his after-the-fact revelations.

Let me give you an example of Carl's inflated sense of power. He has been a die-hard New York Yankee fan since his little league coach took his whole team to Baltimore to see the likes of Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris play against the Orioles. Ever since that game more than fifty years ago, he has worn his Yankee hat all day after a win, but if they lose, he takes it very personally, leaving his hat in the closet. You see, because they lost a game once while he was watching, his conjuring ability holds the power to jinx all subsequent games. Therefore, he only views the games later on the Internet. If he watched the game in real time, of course, they would lose. Coincidence? Hum! Conjuring? Not even!

Now, lest you think I'm totally unconvinced of my husband's supernatural ability, I should mention that his self imposed label as a conjurer started a few months after his mother died. It was nearly Christmas, and he was thinking about her as he left his office for the day. He turned to shut the door and there on the floor lay a Christmas card. He picked it up and, sure enough, it was from his mom. Okay, maybe it fell from atop the bookshelf where it had been saved from a previous Christmas or maybe it was pushed out the back of his desk drawer as he closed it. Of course, I have only his word (and his "Boy Scout honor") that he was thinking about her at that precise moment, but I confess I had never seen this particular card before, and it was addressed to him, alone. While my mother-in-law was alive, her cards always included our children and me. Did he conjure it?  I'll let you draw your own conclusion.  As for me, I believe there was, indeed, a supernatural force at work, but I'm convinced it was the Holy Spirit sending my husband the clear message that his mother is at peace.