I *think* we met an angel at Goodwill today.

Theo and I stopped by to look for a few school books and some fabric. We were in the farthest corner of the store and noticed a blue kids bike that was perfect for him. Theo has never learned to ride because Lucy’s old one is now all rusted and torn up, and this one was only $12. Still, it wasn’t on our list for the day, and after Theo played with it for a bit, we walked away.

An elegant, older woman—dressed to the nines in all black with a fur-trimmed coat and leopard-print hat—told us how great a bike it would be for Theo. She’d watched him with it and approached us afterwards to ask if I planned to buy it.

“No, not today,” I told her. “I’m not sure I have room in the car anyway.”

Introducing herself as Rosa—”an evangelist”—she shared that she used to teach children and loves “all [her] babies.” Then she handed me three five-dollar bills and said, “You just let me get it for him, honey.”

I did the Southern thing—politely refused once and then accepted. One doesn’t stand in front of a woman of God who looks like Cicely Tyson and dare to refuse. Or, if she does, she regrets it immediately.

I tucked away the bills, and then Rosa reached over to my son—my introverted, hates-to-be-touched-unless-asked son—put her hands on his head, kissed his hair, and blessed him. He was surprised, but didn’t pull away. We thanked Rosa for her kindness and, as she turned to go, she replied, “I love you! God bless!”

Reader, I turned away for thirty seconds, and Rosa the Evangelist was gone. The entire store was visible from where we stood in the farthest corner, and she was nowhere to be seen. Even if Rosa had made a beeline for the front immediately after walking away, it’s unlikely that we wouldn’t have seen her. Perhaps she was a speed walker. Perhaps she was a sweet old grandmother who only came in to find some child to bless. Logic could find an explanation.

But you know what my spirit tells me?

Rosa the Evangelist was exactly who she said she was.