There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think about one of my kids being stolen. I’m not obsessed. It’s just a thought. Well… fear maybe, that goes though my mind during a normal situation of say… my youngest, pulling out his skateboard to play on the driveway. I’m concerned. Always. I worry.
A Mom once said to me, “Why do you always think about your kid being taken?! Don’t you realize it only happens to one in a million kids in the USA??”
I looked right at her and without a beat I said, “And what if that one kid is yours?”
She didn’t say anything.
Call me overprotective. Crazy. Insane. I don’t care. I have three kids. They are mine. I refuse to lose one of them just because I was lazy not thinking through a situation. I’m not alone. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare, and for one family, a family who belongs to the same Los Angeles Jr. Kings my kids do, it was almost a reality for them. But thanks to the heroism of two courageous individuals, they have their child home.
In February 2014, 4-year-old Grady and 6-year-old brother Brendan O’Brien, were walking home from school with their nanny in Westchester when a man approached them, assaulted the nanny and grabbed young Grady and began to run away.
A man working at a nearby restaurant, Jesus Delgado, heard Grady’s calls for help and instinctually and successfully chased down the attacker, who was later arrested.
The what-if’s of this horrific experience should be enough to make you, my dear readers, close your computer, find your kids and talk to them (even for the 800 th time) about the importance of knowing their surroundings and how to react and respond in similar situations. Because it happens. 1 in a million could be you.
Moments like this always make me refocus on what is important in life. Life is shitty when you think about all the ridiculous stress we freak out about, that can bog you down. Bills, fights, feelings….the stupid daily grind. Yet in a mere second your life could be turned upside down where instantly, none of that matters.
Find your kids, find your husband. Take a few minutes. Look in their faces, connect and give them all a huge sappy, loving hug. Cause there are no guarantees. All you have is right now.
FYI….Mr. Delgado’s act of courage isn’t going unnoticed in the locally community, and rightfully so. He is a father himself of a 4-year-old daughter suffering from severe heart and brain complications. To make a donation – all proceeds will go to Delgado and his family – visit http://www.gofundme.com/jesus–westchester-hero. In just a few days, the fund has raised over $10,000!