What is your greatest fear?
Spiders, mice, snakes, and heights all pale in comparison to my greatest fear. One I really don't even like talking about.
Fear is such an ugly thing, and I'd like to think I've come a long way in not fearing or worrying about the worst case scenarios that could happen, but the thought of having a child missing turns my stomach.
For a few minutes I once thought Sailor and Rosebud had been kidnapped. We had dropped them off at their grandparents while we went on a day trip to visit family. Mid afternoon our driver came bursting into the house acting all agitated and announced he had just received a call from "Grandma" saying that the children had been playing in the sandbox all day, but someone just drove off with them.
The horrible cold clammy feeling that followed my initial scream, and then the awful weakness as I collapsed in the bathroom is something I don't think I'll ever forget.
The driver had meant it as a joke. What my mother-in-law had called to say was simply that they were taking the children over to the neighbors to help them plant their garden and wanted us to know where they were.
It was a huge relief knowing everything was okay, but the terror and shock had been so overwhelming it took days to get back to normal.
I blame this experience on why this is my greatest fear.
Yeesh! Your driver had a cruel sense of humor! I can think of nothing less funny than a missing child. One of our daughters went missing after work one Friday, and it had us worried to death all weekend. The police interviewed one of her friends, and reported back that the girl knew where our daughter had gone "but they don't let us use rubber hoses any more". He had a teenaged daughter himself, and knew exactly how frightened, angry, and frustrated we were. Turned out she'd met two fellows at a party and had decided to spend the weekend with them! "I didn't think you'd mind." By that time, we were ready to kill her, ourselves, without a second thought. Funny how you can get that angry with somebody you deeply love.
ReplyDeleteThat is so not funny! When we are in public with our grandkids and lose sight of one of them for a couple of minutes, I get that horrible sick feeling in my gut!
ReplyDeleteBeyond terrible. That is my biggest fear too. Like you, I try not to think about it. I would have been livid at that driver.
ReplyDeleteI hope you never used that driver again.
ReplyDeleteNot a funny joke in any case whatsoever! I have a fear of being cut on. But I don't go around thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteNothing last month but searches for Caneyhead or Caneyhead, TX. The all time weirdest search keyword I've ever gotten is "chocolate love phone". I can't even figure out what that is.
Barbara, blogging at Life & Faith in Caneyhead
Oh my! I can't believe anyone would think that was even remotely funny. I think that is every parents worst fear. I'm so glad it wasn't true.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Betsy
not funny at all
ReplyDeleteI know that feeling you experienced in the bathroom, or at least something similar. My youngest who has dangerous seizures and blood sugar issues can get irrational at times. Two times he has managed to get away from me, in irrational anger, and disappear. Once in a store in a small city 15 miles from home. I thought he was in the store, but he had found a door I didn't know about and was not watching why I waited for my husband. He was out there in all that traffic or maybe in the woods behind the stores - it seemed impossible that he would be found and be ok. The police and my husband found him overlooking a flooding, raging creek on a busy road. I was a mess. Another time he ran into an abandoned train yard and grain mill. Both times I thought I might never see him again, at least not the way I wanted to.
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