the good neighbour (?)
tuesday afternoon i pulled a three year old out of the middle of the street during rush hour. she lives across the road from us and most likely has fetal-alcohol syndrome. her mother was inside the house, doors shut tight. i brought the little toe-headed darling home with a heavy heart. she was more than three houses down from her own house. the family car stood in their driveway - a mini-van with driver’s side door and drivers passenger sliding door open.
“I’m glad you brought her back”, the bad mother said with all the emotion of receiving a stale potato.
“I’m glad she didn’t get hit by a car!” i practically shrieked.
then the bad mother then made some comment about how she’s not going to let the little one “play in the car again” since obviously she can “get out of her straps” whatever that means. i walked home quickly needing a drink.
i have yet to completely shake this incident off. i have a three year old. and i’d be mortifiedembarassedbesidemyselfintears if someone brought her home and told me she had been in the middle of the street halfway down the block. i’d kiss the ground her returner walked on! thank you thank you thank you for bringing my darling back. i didn’t get that from the bad mother AT ALL! which is chilling.
the truly frightening part is, is that this type of thing has happened at least once before. but that time the seven year old “older sister” chased after the three year old in the street and pulled her down. other neighbours who saw this incident said the three year old hit her head after being pulled by her big sister, then the bad dad came out and yelled at the three year old.
so after much deliberation, i called Child Protection and got some advice on what to do, not if but when, something like this happens again.
then yesterday i noticed the bad mother coming home, i’m watching her like a hawk now, and she got out and the seven year old got out and they both went into the house. i thought that the little three year old was at a sitters or with a sitter, but no. after over a full minute bad mom came about out of the house, pulled the three year old from the car and then they both went in.
when did it become ok to leave kids unattended in a car? i don’t even let my daughter play around the car when i’m standing right there. and it’s not like bad mom was schlepping in bags or something, she just left her out there.
my mom used to tell me that she wanted to wrap me up in cotton and keep me in her pocket, that way she knew i’d be safe. i thought this completely ridiculous. i kinda get it now.
i think i’m in for a long summer though with this fucking housewiferey, this stay-at-home-mom business. but now that i’ve incidentally saved the three year old, i feel protective of her. and i pray, utterly, that she is safe.