Maybe I spoke too soon…
“I’m getting worried,” John said. “Davy’s still not back.”
Davy had left 20 minutes earlier to buy some soda – and we hadn’t seen him again.
“Do you know where a store is?” John had asked.
“Yep! Sure do!” Davy replied.
We figured his would go to a small store somewhere right around the hotel, but some Pepsi, and be back in a couple minutes.
So when he wasn’t back 20 minutes later, we started to worry. What if he got lost? Does he even know the name of our hotel? How would he ask for help without speaking Spanish?
John and I dashed out the door to start the search.
“I wonder,” I said to John, “if he might have gone to the supermarket? It’s a fair distance, but I think he knew the way there. I’ll head that way and see if I can find him.”
“I’ll go the other way,” John said – and we parted ways.
I found some artisans in the park who were just packing up their wares for the night. “Have you seen my son? With blond hair?”
“He passed by here about 15 minutes ago – going that way.”
Whew! He was headed for the supermarket after all.
But when I got there – no Davy. Not a trace. I panicked.
I raced out of the supermarket and dashed back toward the hotel. If he wasn’t there, I’d call the police… I’d round up a search party… I’d… I dunno…but I’d do something!
As I passed through the park again, one of the artisans called out to me. “He just came by here! We told him you were looking for him at the supermarket.”
I turned around and raced back… and found Davy in the parking lot of the supermarket – with one of the artists.
Why did I even doubt him in the first place? He knew perfectly well where he was going. He knew perfectly well how to get back to the hotel. Will I never learn?
But poor John hadn’t been so lucky. He wandered the pitch black streets in growing panic. I had no idea where to even begin to look for him, so the kids and I simply went through our bedtime routine and waited.
Ten minutes went by and I knew John was panicking. 15 minutes… A full thirty minutes after Davy and I got back, John finally returned and his heart could – at last – slow down.
The takeaway? The kids know where they’re going. Trust them.
That is a hard one to trust. I do the same with my kids in everyday life. My son is always telling me to relax. Maybe, just maybe… he has a point.
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Maybe… I’m sure we all fight with that one. At what point do we figure out that they are more capable than we give them credit for?
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I remember searching for Joe Dukes at Yellowstone. Where was he? Finally we bothered to look in one of the cabins we were using. He was in there asleep all along.
I hope everyone is feeling OK now. -Kevin-
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