Im not often like this guys, but if youre a parent, please take a moment to read this status. Really, even if you arent one, read it and pass it on to a loved one or friend who is. So why am I still awake at 4 am? Because while tooling around on Facebook almost 3 hours ago, I clicked from one article to another, idly reading, until I came across an article from several years ago about the epidemic of children dying in hot cars- Specifically, about parents who simply FORGOT their child was in the car because of a change in routine or the like, and inadvertently left them to die. This thought has always terrified me, and this article was simply devastating. You may have seen it before, as it won the Pulitzer Prize in 2010. I had not. You can find it here (washingtonpost/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/27/AR2009022701549_5.html?sid=ST2009030602446), and honestly, I dont know if Im telling you to read it or not. I am still here, awake, and crying, and not even able to contemplate going to sleep, and moved to the point of writing this rather long and emotional status. It is certainly a powerful article, to say the least. Ive been trying to calm myself down, and reading the log of the live chat between the reporter and the public posted after the article has helped me. Specifically, there was a comment with some very good advice to prevent this from happening, and I needed to share this, I think, to have any chance of sleeping tonight. KidsAndCars.org offers these reminders that dont cost a penny and can certainly help to prevent these tragedies. If you employ the first three (all at the same time) your child should never be inadvertently left behind. *** Put something youll need like your cell phone, handbag, your employee badge, lunch or brief case, etc., on the floor board in the back seat. Get in the habit of always opening the back door of your vehicle every time you reach your destination to make sure no child has been left behind. This way it will become a habit. KidsAndCars.org calls this the Look before you lock campaign ***Keep a large teddy bear in the childs car seat when its not occupied. When the child is placed in the seat, put the teddy bear up front in the passenger seat. Its a visual reminder that anytime the teddy bear is up front you know the child is in the back seat in a child safety seat. ***Make arrangements with your childs day care provider or babysitter that you will always call them if your child will not be there on a particular day as scheduled. Ask them to phone you if your child does not show up when expected. Many childrens lives could have been saved with the telephone call from a concerned child care provider. Give child care providers all your telephone numbers, including that of an extra family member or friend, so they can always confirm the whereabouts of your child. ***If you see a child alone in a vehicle, get involved. If they are hot or seem sick, get them out as quickly as possible. Call 911 or your local emergency number immediately. Everyone, please dont make the mistake of thinking this could never happen to you. I know that it could happen to me. I just think it might be less likely to because Im so terrified of it. And after reading that article, I think the odds have lessened even further of my making that same mistake. I think parts of that piece will always stay with me, and occasionally I will think of some of the parents interviewed in that article and tear up again, and that it will help me to always, always look in the backseat of my car before walking away from it. Again, guys, this article IS gut-wrenching. I am literally still shaking. But as awful as it was, as much as I cried, as haunting as I know it will be for me, Im still glad I read it.
Posted on: Sat, 14 Jun 2014 08:19:24 +0000
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