The Blizzard Bundle of Joy

The Blizzard Bundle of Joy

Written by Tammy Varner Hornbeck

Hope had come into the store for groceries, kicking herself for waiting until the last minute. The parking lot had been vacant except for a lone car parked by the door. At least there wouldn’t be a line. She grabbed a buggy and began to make her way around the store stocking up on the essentials that she had been too busy at work to think about. One by one she began to check things

off her list… Hamburger meat, check. Pasta, check. Can vegetables, check. Jiffy cornbread mix, check. Tomato sauce, check. Hope loved making homemade soups during the winter, and a blizzard was the best excuse ever to make a giant batch and eat on it for days. She was already dreaming about being snuggled up

on the couch, snuggled into her favorite quilt and reading one of the books on her “to-read” pile that she’s neglected for way too long.

After going down a couple of isles, Hope began to feel strange. She hasn’t seen anyone else in the store. No employees at all. No stockers. No one at the deli. No one at the bakery. Come to think about it, she didn’t even see a cashier at the front of the store when she walked in. Even if there weren’t any customers, shouldn’t there be employees? Chills began to creep up and down her spine, making her nervous. Hope decided to push her cart down the back of the store to search each isle for an employee, just to ease her mind. When she didn’t find a single employee, the chills turned into fear and she decided to quickly grab her things and leave. Surely there would be an employee to check her out…

Hope grabbed the last item on her list and hurried to the front of the store. She stopped dead in her tracks when she reached the end of the isle and looked up and down the registers searching for someone to check her out. All the register lights were off. The only registers with their lights on were the self-checkout registers. This is way too weird.

“Hello?” No answer.

“Is anybody here? I’m ready to check out!” No answer.

Hope stood there looking at the empty store for several minutes. With every minute that passed, she began to feel more frightened. She looked out the glass doors and realized that in the short time she had been in the store the blizzard had worsened. Well, I can’t stay here all night. Good thing I am not paying in cash and have my bank card. Hope pushed her cart to the self-checkout registers and quickly ran her purchases through and bagged them. She looped her bags over her shoulder and headed towards the door. Hope had just stepped on the carpet with the sensor that opened the sliding glass doors, snow billowing inside when she heard a baby’s cry. She looked around to see if someone had walked into the store but didn’t see anyone. She took a tentative step at the same time looking around her when the baby’s cry made her stop just inside the store. This time she looked down at the floor and gasped…there was a baby inside of a carrier sitting just inside the store by the door! The cold air must have woken it up.

 Hope dropped her bags on the floor and hunkered down to take a closer look at the baby. Underneath a pastel pick baby blanket was a baby about two months old. She rocked the baby in its carrier, instinctively singing lullabies to comfort it. Hope kept singing while she glanced around searching for the baby’s mother. Where did you come from? Where is your mommy? After a few minutes, the baby drifted back to sleep. Hope picked up the carrier and moved it further inside away from the cold wind coming in the doors. She gently put the carrier on the floor and went outside to look for the baby’s mother. There were no more cars in the parking lot and the one that had been there was gone. Could the mother have walked to the store? Was the mother waiting in the car for someone else to show up before abandoning her baby? Now what do I do? Hope went back into the store and stood by the baby, looking around for someone, anyone that might have left this baby.

Hope knew that leaving the baby alone in the store was not an option. She knew that for certain. Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Hope began to pray. God always had an answer. Dear Lord, what do I do with this baby? I can’t find its mother anywhere. I can’t just leave her…God, I need your guidance and I need an answer in a hurry. The storm’s getting worse and I need to get home where it is safe. Please God, help me! In Jesus’s name, Amen!” Hope opened her eyes and a still soft voice answered her in her spirit. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27.

A calming peace filled her entire being, pushing out the fear that had taken over her walking through the store. Before Hope knew what she was doing, she picked up the baby carrier with one hand, looped her grocery sacks over the arm of the other hand and took the baby with her to her car. The decision was made, she would take the baby home with her and when the storm had passed, she would call the authorities and report she had found the baby. In the meantime, for whatever reason, God wanted her to be a mother to the motherless and she would do her absolute best!

Hope looked at the baby in the seat next to her, smiled, and started the car.