AS parents of a large family we tried to take our children for a day’s outing at weekends.
One Sunday we were heading for the beach. We had just said our usual prayer, “Dear Jesus, please give us a safe trip”, when the small voice of our five-year-old son piped up from the back seat of the car – “And please help us not to get drowned”.
Sitting on the beach later, watching the children, my husband said, “Where’s Con?”
I replied, “He’s playing in the sand near the surf club.”
We looked and he wasn’t there.
My husband searched the beach and surf but there was no sign of Con.
Suddenly a young man emerged from the surf with Con over his shoulder.
He called to my husband, “Does this fella belong to you?”
Handing him over to his father, he said, “He was almost gone.”
Our son was returned to us though coughing and belching sea water. He wasn’t drowned.
It was a graced moment.
ZILLA TONKS
Port Macquarie, NSW
