How It Is with Miracles

One day in the middle of a brutal Michigan winter, retired farmer Les Fields is found half-frozen in his barn. He is naked, smeared with animal blood, and raving that Christ appeared to him. He claims God wants a statue made for the church of Saint Cecelia's in the struggling farming community of Decker.Has Jesus really appeared to the troubled farmer? Or has Les simply slipped into madness? The parishioners of Saint Cecelia's must decide.How It Is With Miracles is a powerful story about the nature of faith, told from the perspectives of the three men at the center of the controversy, the troubled farmer, an aged priest and a young artist. As Les's neighbor one day points out to Father Greg, "You know how it is with miracles, Father. Sometimes they're in the eye of the beholder."You too must decide. But miraculous or not, events in Decker that winter and spring profoundly change the lives of the people involved.

Peter Ohren is an attorney and author living in Lansing, Michigan. His articles and stories have appeared in numerous publications, including the National Law Journal, Timber Creek Review, Mobius Journal and Lansing City Limits. His first novel, Catch of the Day, was published in 2003.