Gloria Loring is an actress and singer who appeared on the soap opera Days of Our Lives and cowrote the theme song for The Facts of Life with her then-husband Alan Thicke. She’s also the mother of the popular R&B singer Robin Thicke.
Gloria recently wrote a book, Coincidence Is God’s Way of Remaining Anonymous, about how a series of mysterious moments helped her through a difficult period of her life—her divorce, her son Brennan’s diabetes and a confrontation with long-suppressed memories of childhood abuse. In a blog post this week, Gloria shared the story of how she encountered just the right person to help during her sister’s final battle against cancer:
“Coincidence helped me find my hit song, inspired a stranger in Nebraska to send me comforting letters during my secret separation and eventual divorce from actor Alan Thicke, led me to uncover and heal a long-forgotten childhood sexual abuse, and put my husband René in the seat beside me after missing his plane, the only plane he’s ever missed.
And coincidences keep appearing. My dear sister Peggy spent the
last six weeks of her three-plus years’ journey with cancer at my mountain home. She and I worked with her naturopathic doctor to improve the quality of her days and we succeeded on some fronts, but the morning came when it was clear I must get her to the hospital.
We began the two-hour drive to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, holding hands for most of the trip. The radio was off, we didn’t speak, and in the silence I sent out a request: Peggy’s so frail; please give us a really gentle doctor when we get to the ER.
Upon arrival, the admitting staff quickly triaged my sister to an examining room. As a nurse took Peggy’s vitals, a handsome man in a white coat entered the room. He looked familiar and I wondered if I had seen him during a previous visit with Peggy.
Looking up from the chart, he said, ‘Hello, Peggy. My name is Dr. Mestres.’ Then he turned to me and asked, ‘And you are…?’
‘Her sister, Gloria.’
He tilted his head slightly, ‘What’s your last name?’
‘Loring. Gloria Loring.’
‘Gloria,’ he said with a smile, ‘it’s Ricardo Mestres, from Disney.’
He filled Peggy in on how, years ago, he and I had worked together to raise money for diabetes research. Then he recounted how he came to a decision to do something more with his life and quit Disney at 47 to go to medical school.
I remembered Ricardo for his patience and kindness, and those virtues were in full force in his interaction with my sister that day. I asked for a gentle doctor for Peggy and I got one that I knew!”
Gloria credits the doctor for helping her sister maintain dignity and comfort during her final hours in the hospital.
You can learn more about Gloria’s book at glorialoring.com.
What unexpected encounters have lifted your spirits? Was it likely that you would have run into that person—or are you convinced other forces were at work? Share your story with us.
