Heaven-Sent Part 3
October 29, 2025
Heaven-Sent Part 3
Whenever I think of something heaven-sent, it is always something that came to me unexpectedly yet was just what I needed. Early in my private psychology practice, when I needed a partner to share office rent and expenses, the right person showed up at just the right time. And in those years when money was tight, out of the blue, opportunities to earn extra income seemed to present themselves exactly when I most needed them. These were heaven-sent.
Looking back, many of my most treasured friendships also arrived unasked for, yet I cannot imagine my life without them. Their pure gifts were also heaven-sent.
One such gift was my friend Carol Munitz, whom I met in graduate school at the University of Virginia. Carol grew up in a conservative Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. Though she had broken away from many of the strict rules she grew up with, she still kept a Kosher kitchen and made regular trips back to New York for gefilte fish, lox, bagels, and many other delectables.
On the surface, we were unlikely companions. I was from the conservative South and newly married, while Carol was single and came from a culture that was entirely new for me. Yet we were a perfect match when it came to the heavy load of graduate studies in clinical psychology. She grasped concepts I struggled with, and I understood what she found difficult. Tutoring each other not only worked, but it also drew us into a friendship. It was agape love at its best. Lark became friends with her, too, and one Passover, Carol invited us to Brooklyn to join her family in their Seder celebration.
However, what I will always carry in my heart goes beyond academics or shared meals. One day, when I was discouraged over a poor performance in a practicum class, I felt weighed down with shame and began to doubt whether I even belonged in the program. Carol noticed my heaviness and asked what was wrong. I told her of the shame and disappointment in my own standards I felt. I shared with her that I might not have what it takes to be a clinical psychologist.
Without hesitation, she pulled out a piece of notebook paper, drew a circle, and filled it with dots. “Each dot represents something you have done.” she said. Then she circled just one of the many dots. “You’re dwelling only on one of them. How can one dot, out of all these dots, define you?”
In that simple drawing, Carol shifted my perspective. The shame lifted. Her affirmation of me in that moment was life-changing. Carol was heaven-sent.
Spiritual practice: Think of friends who have been heaven-sent to you. Why do you value them?
Self-inquiry: Does it ever cross your mind to thank a friend for all the heaven-sent ways they bless your life?
Prayer:
Dear God, I am thankful for my friend Carol, whose kindness still lives in my heart. Amen.
