Having been out of a job for a while, I was on the computer filling out online applications. This process is made easier for me when I have music on at full blast. So I have headphones on and am almost completely oblivious to the world around me. I say "almost" because I am using my peripheral vision to keep some grip on reality. And it is with these peripherals that I notice my husband trying to get my attention. So I take out one headphone and ask him what's going on. And his words are "We can't find Jenna." I'm not one to immediately panic so I make a systematic search of the house and backyard since the doors to the front yard are closed and Jenna doesn't know how to open them. Well, it suddenly became obvious to me that although Jenna doesn't know how to open a door knob, her older cousin who she had been playing with does. So I ask her if they went to the front yard at all. And sure enough, our fears are soon realized that yes indeed they were in the front yard. And not only that, she had come in to use the restroom and left Jenna out there. Alone. Without telling anyone.
Let me pause for a moment here and say that not once did I blame my niece for anything so I wasn't angry. My niece is an only child and older (I think about 8) and I don't believe she understood that although she can play in the front yard and behave responsibly by not wandering off, a 2 year old doesn't have quite the same capability. Of course after Jenna was found I simply told her that next time to please tell someone where they were at and to not leave Jenna out front where she could wander off. By the look on my niece's face she was torn and berating herself on the inside for what she had done and I tried not to add to that in order to keep from further traumatizing her.
Now, back to the story at hand...
After my niece told us what happened, my husband was in a near frenzy. He hopped in the car and started driving away to search for her. My father-in-law and niece went another way, my sister-in-law still searching the house, just in case. I decided that would be a good time to phone the police but I was first going to call my husband to let him know I would stay on our street for when they arrived. As I'm walking down the street trying to reach him, the phone just ringing and ringing, I see a pink and purple outfit in the distance... and I hang up and start running! I knew it was my baby. And sure enough it was. With a man trailing behind her. Initially I was shocked of course. I didn't know the man, but a split second later I realized, who knows how long she'd been lost for? If he were to be a kidnapper, they'd be long gone by now. So relief and gratefulness washed through me and out of my eyes in the form of tears. By this time Jenna has spotted me too and with a joyous cry of "Mom!" she runs towards me. I squeeze her into my arms and tears are still running down my cheeks. She gives me a confused look and says "Don't cry Mom." As if it were that simple. To her it was one big adventure. To me it was one of THE worst moments and feelings in my life. And I've had some pretty bad ones. Juan has found us by now and is pulled up talking to the man. We both thank him and I start walking home with Jenna in my arms. I can't put her down. My fear of losing her was that great. Imagine how surprised, and not to mention awkward, I felt when the man started walking in the same direction...
Was he following us to see where we lived? Was he going to call Child Services over a simple mistake? What the heck was going on? Well, we stop in front of our house where everyone from our little search party has converged to welcome Jenna home from her little outing, and are now staring curiously at this man. As it turns out, he's our next door neighbor... whom we only manage to say hi to once in a while, never stopping to commit to memory what he looks like, or even what his name is. And so, he didn't recognize our daughter. All he knows is a little girl was knocking on his door and putting her fingers in his mail slot going "Helloooo!". He had an idea that she was ours but when he tried to find out she wouldn't go. So he says he followed her for 2, yes 2!, blocks before trying to lead her back down our street. At least we taught her to stop at crosswalks and wait for the light...
Now, I know that none of this is our fault and we didn't fail as parents but you still question it. And if you think this is crazy and scary, wait until you hear about Episode #2 "That Was NOT Candy".
Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.1
The face of trouble.
No comments:
Post a Comment