Musings From The Edge
Read Time:3 Minute, 31 Second
As I sat on the bench in Walgreen’s waiting for my prescription to be filled I saw her walk up to the water fountain and stare at it for a moment. She had long blond hair that hung down onto her shoulders, a pretty green dress befitting her tender age of probably 5 or 6 and a lavender sweater that hung loosely from her shoulders to below her waist. She and the water fountain were both about three feet tall and therein lay the problem. She stood on her tip toes and stretched as high as she could and her little face could only reach the rim of the water fountain. She tried standing higher on one tip toe and pulling with her little hands to just reach high enough to get a bit of water. I watched her struggle for at least five minutes as she pulled and twisted and turned tried her very best to get a drink, all to no avail. I found myself twisting and turning in my seat with her trying to somehow give her a little extra push or boost so that she could reach the last 3 or 4 inches to get that drink of water she so obviously wanted. Nothing seemed to help. Well, you might think, the solution was quite simple. Get off your butt and walk over and help the child, give her a helping hand. Don’t just sit there like some old curmudgeon who hates children. I really don’t hate children. In fact I have a grand daughter about her age. The problem lies my friends within our society today and our distrustful nature of everyone else.
Imagine if you will that I had “done the right thing” and had walked over and lifted the pretty little girl up to get a drink of water. While that was in progress the momma had just happened to walk around the corner and see this old man with his old gnarly hands on her sweet innocent daughter at the drinking fountain. Perhaps I am seeing ghosts where they don’t exist, but the thought of the spectacle of momma screaming “Get your hands off of my child you dirty old man!” While someone else called 911 to report a child molestation in progress just didn’t seem very appealing to me at the moment. And yes, I could have tried to explain that I was only trying help the child get a drink of water. I wasn’t doing anything wrong. But, and correct me if I am wrong here, the administrators and teachers at the McMartin School in California said that they were not doing anything wrong also. It took them several years in jail before they got that straightened out. That tactic didn’t appear to work very well for them either. So it seemed that we were at an impasse. The little girl wanting, perhaps feeling that she needed the water. Me wanting to help her, but not daring to place myself within arms reach of her lest I end up tarred, feathered, and rode out of town on a rail, and momma bear nowhere in sight unless I go within three feet of her child.
So I did what any red blooded former Marine would do. I asked some else for help. I got up and asked the pharmacist if he had a step stool behind the counter the little girl could use to get a drink of water. The little girl heard me and looked at both of us and smiled. The pharmacist looked at the little girl and he, in his most sincere voice said, ‘Sir, I’m sorry, but our liability would not cover us if she were to fall from the stool.” I looked at him in disbelief. The little girl’s smile turned into a pout. I looked at the little girl and said, “Honey, what is your name?” The little girl again smiled and said, “Angela.” “Angela,” I said, “Go tell your mother that she’s calling you.” The little girl’s smile got bigger and her eyes widened a bit and she said, “OK.”
I don’t know where this world is heading but I glad I’m getting off before the last stop!
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Poignant post LE! I think we are being asked more than ever, evolving the art of being human and fulfilling our lives, to take every risk that presents itself. Take the risks.
I enjoyed every smile and frown of this read. 🙂
Bee, I would appreciate your understanding but here in Alabama you would be one out of a thousand. Most likely I would assess the situation before I started killing someone also. But today things are SO strange you just don’t know what to do anymore.
Lazer, I can say this. I have a 4 year old girl.
1. Public water fountains, especially near a pharmacy where sick people go, give me the hives. BUT
2. If I came around the corner and saw you helping my kid, I wouldn’t freak out. Well, ok, unless a hand was under the dress, then you’d need that marine training ’cause this mama bear would knock you out cold. But if that weren’t the case, I wouldn’t freak out, would probably thank you, make Lil’Bee thank you too, after I looked at you crooked, of course. But I know, I’m not normal, and odds are, you would have had 911 called on you.
We hear horror stories every day – a toddler was found dead in a trash dump here. A teenage girl disappeared from a Metallica concert, and her body was found months later – also here in VA. Being a mother, I don’t let Lil’Bee out of my sight in public. But, I’m rational enough to not freak out anytime someone would try to help her with something as simple as getting a drink of water.
Know what really doesn’t help the modern parenting situation? The website where you can go to find addresses, a map, and pictures of every convicted pedophile in your neighborhood. That will give a person the creeps, lemme tell you.
Oso, that story of yours gave me chills. It’s one thing for a 5 year old to be an aisle over in the Walgreens, it’s totally different for 2 young’uns to be wandering down the street alone. Bad news, all around.
Thanks Mike.This was a good 15 years ago. Now I’d have called one of my daughters to handle it.
Good story Oso.
Thanks Vigil.
Critter I agree completely. I still don’t know where her momma was.
SJ Clint Eastwood said, “A man needs to know his limitations.” We learned when to act and when to asked for help. 🙂
Oso, 40 or 50 years ago you could’ve put them in your truck and took’em home and no one would have thought any thing of it. Today you would by shot.
Mike and Holte sometimes karma can get confused and be a bitch at the wrong time. The old saying of “Let no good deed go unpunished.” can be all to true.
Bill terrific post. I’ve faced that before.Little girl about 5 holding her YOUNGER sisters hand as they crossed a four lane highway against a red light!
Drivers slamming their brakes, a truck nearly jackknifed;my truck skidded to a halt while my cousin and I screamed at the pair to stop. Mad dogs and Englishmen and little kids, somehow the pair made it across the highway unscathed. My cousin and I pulled into the parking lot and looked for the girls, found them in a supermarket getting milk and bread. I’d assume the parent couldn’t be bothered to get their lazy ass off the couch. We tried to help but two guys in Raider hats even if they mean well can scare little girls, and they were really scared when we tried to talk to the older one.
We couldn’t find a store manager and the clerks we spoke with, both female, seemed to think we were taking a little too much interest in these girls.
I don’t think a woman understands how frozen men can be in this situation. Mike and Bill, no offense but if the cops get involved they can have a way of twisting everything you say to make you nervous. I’m not saying all or even most of them but it happens.
“And where did you say you were going? Gas station? Your buddy here just said you were going to the hardware store.Oh now you both say gas station. So your buddy’s changing his story”.
So we took the cowards way out. We went back to the little girls. We kneeled down to try to look the older one in the eyes, and as earnestly as possible told them how they could have been hurt really bad. We asked if she wanted us to have her mother come get her. Shook her head no. We both pled with her to wait for a green light.She nodded her head yes.Whether she truly understood or just wanted to agree so we’d leave them alone I can’t say.
We slunk off to our truck. Two guys didn’t have the balls to risk the shame of trying to keep two little girls out of danger.
It is a sad state of affairs when a Grandpa cannot help a little girl. Unfortunately, you are right. Your liability would not cover you either.
@Laser,
you know whenever I see footage of Marines going through those seemingly bizarre problem-solving exercises where they have to bridge a stream using purposefully cumbersome and impractical supplied materials, like slippery round cylinderical logs, sand bags etc., while carrying an “injured” team mate (whose feet aren’t allowed to touch the ground per the rules of the exercise), I used to wonder what the hell was that in preparation for?
I think you just justified that exercise for me Laser.
Great story.
-SJ
GR8 piece of writing, Ledge. Can’t say what I woulda done!
LAZER – It’s a shame when you want to help a young vulnerable person (boy or girl), and you are hesitant because of the knowledge that a simple kindness could blow up in your face. It no longer “takes a village.”
This is so true and so typical of society today, when a kind word or deed is misinterpreted as evil intent. This is a great read Bill, sad, but a great read nonetheless.