I’m always taking photos on my phone of the little wonders I find in the world around me, from heart shapes to inspiring sidewalk chalk messages.
Well, a few weeks ago, I visited my parents and snapped a photo of something that I would classify as a pretty big wonder. At first glance it might not look like much. Just an ordinary leather brown suitcase, kind of boxy with two silver locks up top. But to me, it’s exactly what a miracle looks like.
You see, that suitcase is the very one my dad brought with him when he immigrated to the United States from Turkey in 1965. He was just 19 years old at the time, didn’t know a word of English. He left behind all his friends and family, hopeful that his dreams of becoming an engineer would come true. That suitcase carried my dad’s most prized possessions–dozens of black-and-white photos from home and his science and math textbooks.
As a kid, I was vaguely aware of the suitcase. It lived on the top shelf of my parents’ coat closet. I never paid much attention to it, though. It wasn’t until I got older that I actually asked my dad about it and looked inside, finding tons of photos and the letters my parents wrote to each other, back and forth between the U.S. and Turkey.
That’s when I realized how beautiful that scruffy old suitcase actually was. It’s a visible reminder of the hardships my parents endured and the religious persecution they escaped. But also all the wonders they experienced. How they found love, how their dreams came true and how God saw them through it all.
That’s what a miracle looks like to me. What does a miracle look like to you?
Take a photo of a miracle in your life and share it with us on Facebook or click here to email it.
I can’t wait to see what your miracles look like. Happy photo taking!
