Snow, Cookies, and Valentine’s

The snow came in the middle of the night, and by morning drifts had created weird shapes between the house and barn and across the front yard. There was a white blanket of snow everywhere. Schools, businesses, even the air force base and the university were closed. People had been warned not to drive unless absolutely necessary, and for three days I tried to keep busy sewing, crocheting, and writing letters.

But when Valentine’s Day arrived, I decided enough was enough. I wanted to do something special. I remembered the cookie bags my friend Vi had given me—still empty because we hadn’t been able to do our visiting teaching yet. Why not bake some cookies? I thought. I could also make some pumpkin bread from the last pumpkin that hadn’t ended up a jack-o’-lantern.

I went down to our basement storeroom to gather the ingredients. As I looked at the shelves of bottled fruit, vegetables, and other groceries, I felt thankful for the prophet’s counsel to be prepared for emergencies. Even though the roads were closed, we didn’t have to worry about where our next meal would come from. We had enough and to spare—enough to share with our neighbors.

Soon the kitchen smelled of spices and chocolate cookies. My husband, Clem, came in from the barn, sniffed, and asked: “Are you making me a valentine?”

“Yes,” I answered, “but not only for you—for our neighbors, too.” Just then we heard someone come into the garage. It turned out to be our neighbor from down the road and her two small sons. They had stopped by to ask if we had any stored water because their pipes were frozen. Again I thought of our blessings, and of how grateful I was that we had water to share with them.

We invited them in for a warm meal, and they soon left with several gallons of water in jugs—and their valentines. The boys were thrilled with their bag of cookies and a loaf of pumpkin bread. After cleaning up the kitchen and wrapping the loaves in foil, I filled the rest of the cookie bags, and Clem went out to deliver them to some of our other neighbors. A warm feeling came over me as I realized the blessings that come from following the counsel of our prophet. I was so thankful to be able to share with others.

Betty Hively
Xenia, Ohio