We almost lost Thumper

What happened was, Thumper and I had made the trek to the cake decorating store in Berkeley for the special cupcake papers for NSSDs 40th birthday party on Saturday. They ended up not having the papers I wanted so it was an almost wasted trip, but I picked up some sprinkles and a pastry box big enough to transport 75 cupcakes and was on my way out the door when the unwieldy piece of cardboard wrapped itself around a string of jingle bells hanging from the door handle. I turned to free myself and the box from the door and when I turned back around Thumper and his stroller were nowhere to be seen. After frantically glancing up and down the street, I finally spotted the bright green Bob overturned in the middle of University Avenue. There was no movement or crying, and instantly I knew that the it had been struck by a car and that Thumper was dead or, at the very least, suffering from a severe head trauma. I darted over and righted the stroller to reveal Thumper, securely strapped in, unscathed, and completely unaffected by it all. In reality, it was fortunate that the stroller had capsized as it went over the curb since it had kept him from proceeding far enough out into the street to be in any real danger. A few more feet and he would have been a goner.

After I had rescued him from the wayward stroller, showered him with kisses, and checked and rechecked his carseat before heading off to the next errand, I started to think about a story I had heard a few years ago about an incident that was captured on a security camera. A woman was running to beat a train at the crossing while carrying her baby in a car carrier. At the last minute she decided she wouldn't make it and stopped, however the carrier kept moving forward from momentum and swung out in front of the train just as it passed. I didn't see the video myself, and the story is horrendous enough that I would like to believe that it is an urban myth. It doesn't matter, though, the image that I have conjured up in my head is stuck there forever and whenever I think about it my heart hurts as if it was my baby, and my moment to wish I could take back. None of us is impervious to mistakes or moments of sheer stupidity. I am acutely aware of all of the times I forgot to buckle Bear's seatbelt or turned my back for a minute too long, and I shudder to think of what could have happened. Life is full of almosts and near misses. Luckily for me almost doesn't count.

We headed on to the grocery store for cake mixes, and as we left the checker asked me if I needed any help out. For a moment I imagined Thumper in the grocery cart, careening down the steep parking lot and spilling out onto Redwood Road, perhaps gaining enough forward momentum to make it all the way to Taco Bell. I took a deep breath. "No thanks" I said, taking a firm grip on the cart. "I can handle it."