The perfect hello from Heaven

“When I bought a guinea pig on a whim from a pet store, I never imagined I’d become so attached to him. Since I got him on St. Patrick’s Day, I named him Shamrock. We quickly became inseparable.

“I would let him scamper around the house, and when weather permitted, I would take him out into the backyard and let him play in a penned-in grassy area. When he passed away from pneumonia four years—almost to the day—after I got him, I went into grieving mode. Tearfully, I laid him to rest in the grassy area where he once liked to play since I could see it from my kitchen window.

“A few days later, St. Patrick’s Day rolled around, and I longed to be close to Shamrock. I went outside and sat in the grass at his grave and couldn’t believe what I saw.

“All around the stone that I placed there with his name painted on it were perfect three-leaf clovers…true shamrocks. Stunned, I then slid my phone from my back pocket and typed in what shamrocks truly symbolize. Chills feathered over my skin as I read the most comforting answer…the three leaves stand for faith, hope and love.

“‘Thank you, sweetheart,’ I whispered to my angel as a rush of awe and peace wrapped itself all around me.”