Jumping to conclusions

@fluffysue (1482)
United States
June 23, 2008 1:23am CST
I have neighbors that live a couple of doors down from me, they have an a little girl who is about 4. I met them when they first moved in around the time she was born. I chat with them occasionally and they are very nice. A couple of days ago, I was outside and heard the child yelling and crying from inside the house. It seemed to me the sound was coming from the garage. She was crying, screaming, saying something like, "No, mommy, please" and something about "room". Now even though the neighbors have always seemed perfectly nice, and I would NEVER suspect them of anything, my mind somehow jumped to the idea that they had locked her in the garage, possibly after harming her. I went inside for a minute and thought about what, if anything, I should do. When I went back outside, I heard a little more conversation between the mother and child, and though I could not hear much, I realized what was going on. The little girl's room was right above the garage, and the window was open. Yes, the mother was "torturing" the daughter, all right-- either by making her go to bed or punishing her by sending her to her room! I still cannot believe that I actually wondered for a few minutes if I should call the police on these nice people! Maybe it's just because I don't have children, so I don't always realize how loud it can get! But I couldn't bear the thought that maybe the girl was in trouble, and I couldn't live with myself if something had happened and I could have stopped it, but didn't. Do you think you might have jumped to the same conclusion? Or have you ever jumped to the wrong conclusion in a similar manner?
2 responses
• United States
23 Jun 08
Before I had a child, I would jump to similar conclusions. Now that I'm a mommy to a four year old, I realize that kids are likely to holler and scream for any and all reasons. I am always asking my daughter to lower her voice when speaking in the house or outside, for this very reason. She is one of the most vocal children! And loves to exercise her lungs either during play or arguments. You should have heard her the other day when she found out that she would not be getting cookies for lunch. She threw a Titantic sized tantrum that day! This is the reason, most parents give into tantrums, cause they are afraid that someone will accuse them of child abuse and the state will take away their kids. Kids are usually worse off in foster care, especially in our state. You should hear the horror stories. Too graphic and sad for open forum. Just today, I heard some little boys screaming in our neighborhood and my mind jumped to the same conclusions. When I looked outside, I saw two little boys that live next door happily playing and calling to each other. It's just child's play! Even experienced moms jump to conclusions!
@fluffysue (1482)
• United States
26 Jun 08
Kids really can be loud, can't they? I was at the beach today, and was over by the outdoor showers. I heard this kid who sounded like he was screaming for his life, he was probably about 5. I looked over and his mom has him under the shower, trying to get the sand off him. Some nerve! LOL (the water wasn't even cold...he just didn't want to be under it!) It's good to know that even moms jump to conclusions, even ones with loud 4-year-olds! Now I know why my mom was always telling us not to scream so loud...
@samson1967 (7414)
• India
23 Jun 08
The wise will never interfear when parents are with their wards, especially when they take their children to task. Even when We interfear out of sympathy, we will end up in getting abused from the parents. In such circumstances the parent/s will shout " I AM HITTING MY CHILD, WHO ARE YOU TO ASK? YOU BETTER SHUT UP AND GET LOST, I KNOW TO CONTROL MY CHILD".
@fluffysue (1482)
• United States
26 Jun 08
Well, I would certainly never directly confront anyone, though I might make an exception if I actually saw that a child was being physically hurt or was in danger (a slap on the behind does not count). But I would not hesitate to call the police if I thought abuse was going on. You never know if that phone call will save a child's life, and I would rather be safe than sorry. Fortunately I did think twice before calling the police on my innocent neighbors!