It was late at night and I was having trouble falling asleep so I decided to take a stroll in the neighborhood park next door. The weather had been quite mild for weeks but today had been unusually hot and humid. Even now, there didn't seem to be even a hint of a breeze to stir the air.
To pass the time, I was mulling over a decision I had to make concerning my girlfriend. I was listing all the positive and negative aspects I could think of. Should I, or shouldn't I? What would she think? What would she say?
I was totally unsure of myself and was beginning to think that it wasn't worth all the aggravation. I must have been talking to myself aloud because out of the night a deep raspy voice said, "Trust yourself. You'll be fine."
It was so sudden and unexpected that it nearly scared me to death. I honestly thought I was completely alone. I nearly pulled a neck muscle trying to look around for the source of the voice, but try as I might I couldn't see anyone around even with the moonlight and the street lights that lit up the park at night.
With a quiver in my voice that I couldn't avoid, I said, "Who is that? Who's there?" There was no answer so I waited a minute and tried again. "Who's there? What did you say? You scared me so much I didn't hear what you said."
Again, nothing.
Giving up, I slowly started to leave. I hadn't gone more than ten feet when I heard the voice again. "Trust yourself. You'll be fine." This time I heard the words and even though the voice was so deep it almost seemed to croak, the message was clear to me.
The next day I proposed to my girlfriend and she said, "Yes!"
That night, I took another stroll through the park, this time accompanied by my new fiance'. I was marvelling over my good luck and the prospects of spending the rest of my life with the girl of my dreams. As we passed the same spot where I had heard the voice, I mentioned the experience to her. I told her that the message the voice had said had given me the courage to finally ask the big question.
She said, "Who was it?"
"I don't know," I said. "The voice never said anything else."
We both stood there for a few minutes in total silence contemplating the meaning of life and the possibility of guardian angels. Then, as we walked home, we both thought we heard a deep voice behind us say, "Howard".