Resentment

I am feeling resentful when really I should feel grateful, and I'm taking time out from cleaning the kitchen to tell you about it.

Minutes ago there was a knock at the door. I opened it and there was a policeman (a very young policeman) and Emeline. A sad little Emeline. It reminded me of a sad little Lindsay so many years ago.

The gist of the story is that Timothy took the van to vacuum it for me and drop off some stuff at DI. Emeline was standing on the front porch and saw him leave and freaked out that he didn't take her. (He didn't know she wanted to go with him.) I thought Emeline was still playing in the backyard with the dogs.

So, Emeline followed the van until she got to the really, really, really busy main road where she stood screaming and crying for her Dad (this is all from the policeman's account of the happenings) and someone called the police, and he went and picked her up. Fortunately, she had no problem showing him how to get back to her house.

So--I SHOULD be extremely grateful that Emeline wasn't hit by a car or kidnapped. And I am grateful. I really, really am.

However, I am not that impressed by a young police officer who gives you that "look" like you are a terrible parent because you manage to lose track of a four year old for fifteen minutes. Really--in the honest world we all all know that it could and does happen to everyone. Also in the honest world we don't treat the mom like an idiot and/or incompetent--we are just glad that this time around, the story has a happy ending.

I'm tired of our new dishonest world where we pretend that moms can keep their children safe at all times. Another way to punish people for reproducing?? I don't know--I just know that this particular officer most likely has no children of his own, or his wife doesn't tell him the half of what goes on at home. Or he was never a child.

But, I am glad that the officer returned my daughter healthy and in one piece. Lecture or no.