I am blessed to meet people randomly who have a story to tell about Angel Bumps. I can be at the supermarket, the bank, all sorts of places. Recently I brought my dog to the vet’s office for an ear infection. This was during Covid, and the techs came out to fetch the animals. The owners all waited in the parking lot. I was sitting in my convertible when the man next to me said, “That’s a great car!” It’s a 2005 PT Cruiser. It’s not fancy, but it is fun. Like me.
We chatted and he asked what I did for a living. I told him I am an author and mentioned Angel Bumps. “What in the world is an angel bump?” He laughed as he walked closer towards my car. “Well, an angel bump is like a goosebump. Usually there is a chill in the air with a goosebump. An angel bump brings goosebumps when a spirit is sending you a sign.” I thought for sure he would think I was crazy. Most men aren’t open spiritually. He had a big smile on his face when he said, “Have I got a story for you!”
He leaned on the side of my car as he shared his story. “My wife passed away from cancer just two months before our first grandchild’s birth. She even planned the baby shower, but she never made it. Thoughts of holding that little girl gave her so much hope, but cancer won out and she died before the baby was born.” My heart sank. As a grand mom, I can’t imagine missing that precious time.
I wiped a tear as he continued, “I was shopping with my second daughter, Rose, for baby shower gifts when the magic happened. She and my wife would have done this together normally. I’d have watched a football game. Bur here I was in the baby department. Rose repeated over and over how much her mom would have loved all the baby things. Every quilt she touched and each crib we passed, she mentioned her mom. She touched a pink quilt with a baby elephant in the center and hugged it. We passed by beautiful ornate nursery sets. Rose insisted, “‘Mom would have loved this cradle,'” as she wiped a tear. “It was all I could do not to cry myself.”
“I sat in a rocking chair to test it out. Before I knew it my mind had drifted to an image of my wife rocking our new granddaughter. I could see her in my mind. The baby was cooing as my wife whispered to her. She held the baby to her heart and hummed You Are My Sunshine to her. My daughter yanked me out of my dream asking if I’d found a gift yet.
I realized I better get shopping, or I would have a very unhappy pregnant daughter at the baby shower. I passed the frilly outfits and headed toward the play clothes. I found a denim overall outfit with a pink elephant on the front. The little shirt underneath had mini polka dots. It must have been eight inches tall. I laughed when I read the size. Three months! Surely a baby cannot be that small.
My daughter had a basket filled with baby clothes and little animals. I had one outfit. What would my wife have thought? I scurried around the store until I had an appropriate Grandpop gift amount.
I began to enjoy myself. One little jacket had a purple elephant on the front. The trunk was facing up and I always heard that meant good luck. Next, I found a mama and baby stuffed elephants. I was totally enjoying this now that I had a theme.
As luck would have it, I came across and elephant bib that matched my gift. Then we came across elephant crib sheets. A photo holder with a baby elephant popped up next. This was better than the zoo!
Our last stop was to shop for gift bags. I thought this would be easy; Not so much. There must have been sixty different gift bags of all different sizes. The display ran from floor to ceiling. My daughter said, “How do we ever choose one?”
Just then a jumbo bag fell from the very top row. When I picked it up and turned it over there was a baby elephant with a pink bow on the front. My daughter started to cry and said, “’I think Mom is shopping with us today. It matches your elephant theme!”‘ I didn’t even notice that bag. We both had goosebumps.”
“That’s an angel bump, right?”he asked. I assured him that was indeed an angel bump. We compared the goosebumps on our arms.
The gifts were delicately wrapped on the day of the baby shower. When his pregnant daughter held the large bag the very first time, she gently traced the pink bow and the baby elephant’s trunk. “I just love this,” she said.
I had to tell her the truth. “Your mom picked it out. It fell from the very tippy top of display. Nothing even touched it. She approved of the things I bought for the little one.”
He wiped his eye and smiled. I am pretty sure Grand mom shed a few tears in Heaven that day too.
“She didn’t miss the shower after all,” I told him. He nodded and grinned.
“I know she will be watching over our granddaughter for a long, long, time.”
I hugged Bill and thanked him for warming my heart. I am so blessed to share these moments with people.
As told by Bill from Bay Moorings Vet parking lot.
What a wonderful story and proof that the grandmother was participating in this birth and shower!