By Jamie
Last weekend I took a delightful trip, via bus of course, to Pike Place Market with my little girl and my friend (and co-blogger) Liz. We thought it would be a fun adventure. I borrowed a lighter, slimmer stroller so entering and exiting the bus would be easier. We hurried on the bus (ran over some toes, but come on people this ain’t your living room) took our seats. The bus driver hollers “Are you going to take her out of the stroller?” Hmmm…no I wasn’t planning on it, but he stated Metro policy. My only other experience with kiddos on the bus was with my daughters daycare and we had a stroller in tow for one of the tots, but I guess bus drivers are a little more lenient when s/he sees 13 toddlers. OK, done. Lyla was on Liz’s lap. Again the bus driver hollered back, “Collapse the stroller”. Ugh, fine. Now I did practice using this stroller, I swear. I guess I should have practiced while under pressure and on the move. Oh well. We settled in. Had I been solo this would have been a different trip, but thank god for Liz!
The trip was nice, we gathered veggies, fruit and fresh, fresh seafood. It was a short journey, we weren’t tourist, we were Seattlites enjoying the beauty of our city. We waited near the giant popsicle for our return bus. Lyla LOVED that and promptly stated she wanted to eat it, but I persuaded her to wait til we got home. The bus came and this time we were 100% prepared, toddler in arms, stroller folded, Liz weight down with the rest of our bounty. Lyla and I were able to grab a seat near the front and we rode.
There was a (hopefully) nice gentleman across the aisle from us. He made funny faces at Lyla, made her giggle. But this is where my F.U. to Sandusky (and all others like him) comes in. I now question all motives from strange men I see/meet. And really, they aren’t strange, but strangers to me. I thought about had my dad been across the aisle from a toddler making faces to keep the kiddo entertained. A mom might think the same thing. And that’s a shame. As parents we trod a very fine line from being cautious to being overly protective. And with creeps like Sandusky out there it makes that job all the harder. Most men ARE NOT pedophiles or predators. Most people DO HAVE good intentions. But it’s that one rotten apple spoils the whole bunch. I’m glad I don’t have to have serious talks about predators and safety with my daughter…yet. The time will come, though, so I’m starting to think about my strategy. I want to raise a daughter that can interact easily with people, especially since I believe that there is so much to learn from people who are different than us. But I also want my daughter to trust her gut, and not be afraid to call for help. It is something that each of face everyday. We all walk the line. And F.U. to anyone who takes advantage of others, who prey on others, whether they make headlines or not. And I hope Sandusky rots in jail!!
