Playing in the yard. Going to the park. Taking a quick trip to the store. In every conceivable situation our children don’t even think about being safe. It’s just supposed to happen. Odds are they don’t fully understand the concept of staying safe. So what happens when that protective barrier has a hole or two?
One December when my oldest was almost three years old, she managed to escape the safe confines of our back yard. I had gone in to take a shower, and came out to absolute silence. I looked through the window. With no sign of her signature pink coat and bright yellow boots I completely freaked out. Pushing my sockless feet into shoes and running out the front door I began my frantic search for the sweetest little thing in my life.
There was no sight of her up or down our quiet street. Picking a direction I started running and yelling down the street. My next-door neighbor popped his head out to say he thought he saw her walking by his house, but wasn’t sure. He had, to my great relief, called the police.
As I continued on down the street I almost laughed (and sobbed) when I saw her telltale boot prints tracing a path in the gutter. You see, my daughter loved to splash through the snow and slush in the gutters. Without realizing it she had given me a way to find her. I began running down the sidewalk, occasionally looking over to see if the prints were still there.
Close to the end of the block a police car came driving toward me. A young woman rolled down the window and asked, “Have you seen a little girl in a pink coat?” to which I replied, “Have YOU seen a little girl in a pink coat?”
She quickly identified me as ‘Mom’ and told me to go one way around the block while she drove around the other. Two corners later I saw the most fantastic thing in the world: bright yellow boots and a pink coat still splashing along, following the path around the block.
About the time I caught her up in my arms the wonderful policewoman showed up and offered us a ride home. It was the first time in a police car for both of us (it had better be the last as well).
The point is, my daughter had no idea she was in danger. She was just taking a fun and familiar walk around the block, enjoying the scrunching and splashing made by boots in slush. Even though Mom wasn’t there, it was still my job to keep the world a safe place.
This concept must extend beyond physical safety. Our homes must become a haven here on earth, a place of beauty and a place where our children can find peace when things outside the home become scary or confusing. Our homes should be established in righteousness. They should be holy places. We as parents have the power to make our home a place of peace for our children.
M. Russell Ballard, a latter-day apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as Mormon Church), stated:
“But how do we bring that peace into the lives of children who are growing up in trying, troubling times? The best and most meaningful resources are found within the home where faithful, devoted parents and supportive brothers and sisters love one another and teach one another of their divine nature. Unfortunately, we live in a time when home and family values are under constant attack by Satan and his minions. We must ever recognize the significant and irreplaceable role of parents” (M. Russell Ballard, “‘Great Shall Be the Peace of Thy Children’,” Ensign, Apr 1994).
Whether it’s making the backyard a fortress, keeping predators at bay on the computer, locking up dangerous chemicals, or limiting their exposure to television, it is our responsibility to make their world a safer place until they are able to recognize the dangers. It starts even before they’re born and I would imagine goes until the day they die.
When we choose to have these precious beings in our home, we accept this responsibility. Obviously we will make mistakes, and hopefully everyone concerned won’t be hurt when this happens. The important thing for us as the adults is to learn from each blunder, patch up the holes in our safety net, and continue on keeping our children safe.
