Kerianne

She'll probably never read this but my heart has to tell this story ...

I was at McDonald's (no surprise, I know!) with the kids (well, it would be weird if it was just me!). Lito was playing and Leila was eating. I noticed this little girl, maybe about 8 or 9 years of age, at most. She was climbing the outside walls of the play area, right in front of the sign that says no climbing...

I looked around to see if anyone was with her. Yes, this entails some social profiling! Her olive skin and dark short messy hair stood out. The couple next to me (blond and fair skinned) was definitely not a match. The woman in the next booth looked like she was with the other couple so I took that as a dead end as well. There was another couple but they were much older and I had already seen their child with them (a grandchild I'm assuming). The last woman was a large African American with her hands full with about 6 African American kids, so as wrong it is, I assumed this girl was not with her.

No one else was around but I noticed an empty table with leftover food on it. There was a purple pony next to a happy meal so I just sat back and waited for the parent to return. In the mean time, this little girl climbed higher and higher. As I watched the other parents, I caught glimpses of subtle glances her way and disapproving head shakes. No one said anything to her ... I was no better, I didn't want to step on any parental toes!

The little boy that was with the couple next to me ran up to the little girl and said, "Hey! How'd you get up there!" Instantly his mother barked at him, "Don't you dare climb that, I'm not her mother but I AM yours so you are NOT doing that!" Other parents turned their gazes towards the little girl but she didn't get the hint. She kept dangling precariously from the top rim.

As I sat there, getting anxious about her safety, I tried to distract myself. I played with Solana and tried not to glance at the empty table so much. I caught the gaze of the older couple across the room. Why was she looking at me? Maybe it was just me being paranoid. A few more glances her way and I realized she was trying to figure out if I was the girl's mother! I'm fair skinned but I was the only person in the room with dark hair! Great, now they think I'm the bad parent here!!

I kept looking over at the empty table, hoping it was a subtle hint that she didn't belong to me. The ugly stares kept coming though. So I moved ... I literally took Leila and parked us at the other side of the play area. From there, I watched as the little girl kept climbing. At one point she got down and went to the main seating area but came back parent-less still.

On her way back to her climbing, she stopped to chat with me. Seriously, now they will really think she's with me! She asked me if Lito and Leila were my kids. I said yes and her response floored me! "I don't really know my mom" WOW! Okay, what to say to that ... I don't remember my exact words but she proceeded to explain that she lives with her grandfather because her dad is dead (he was shot) and his mom (whose boyfriend has lots of tattoos and tells her how awful jail is) only sees her once or twice a week but that she loves her very much. She also shared that she didn't know why her mom has a tattoo of a devil with a rose on her butt. With that quick summary, right back to climbing she went! By this time, the older couple had left but there was another couple that replaced them. They gave me similar glances, especially after the little girl had come to me on her own. Can you believe it!! They were profiling ME as well!

As I tried to focus on my own kids, I was suddenly startled by the low rumble of a voice from an older, heavy set Hispanic man coming in to the play area. "Kerianne!" He didn't even look at her but she clearly reacted to him, especially when he told her she had 10 minutes to wrap up her playtime. Finally, the "responsible" adult... and not even without blinking, out the door he went, out of sight instantly! Of course she stayed up there and now was proclaiming to the world, "Look, I can touch the ceiling!"

At that point, I couldn't take it any more. How in the world could I get her to come down. Think, think, there's got to be a way ... for her safety above all. I got it! I waited until we locked eyes and I waved for her to come to me. She swiftly made her way down and smiled all the way in my direction. When she got close, I said, "If your mommy were here, she'd probably tell you not to climb that, it's dangerous and I'm sure that she loves you so much that she wouldn't want you to get hurt." She just shyly bit her lip, nodded her head and said, "I love her too". It worked like a charm! In a way ...

For the rest of her play time she hung out with me and the kids. She was so sweet. Let me tell you, Kerianne is very smart. She noticed how the kids look like me and she was well spoken. She enjoyed playing with my kids and she talked about her favorite things. She told me lots of things! Kerianne also knows the difference between "juvi" and regular jail. My heart was so distraught. How could I stay connected to this beautiful little girl? Would her grandfather think it strange if I offered him my number? Wait, I don't know that family, how do I know what they would ask of me if I offered my help with her? And then I looked into Kerianne's eyes as she was telling me how much she loves her mother again. At that point, I didn't care who thought she was with me. I was glad to meet Kerianne!

I hope that someday our paths will cross again. I wish her love and caring from everyone she encounters. I wish for her some great mentors and lots of opportunities. Above all, I hope that all my assumptions and prejudices of her family are wrong...I hope my preconceived perceptions of her rearing is 100% incorrect. I couldn't help but think about my own childhood, she and I have some things in common. At the same time, I felt blessed to have had an overprotective and overzealous religious mother (as much as I hated it when I was young).

When her grandfather came back to the play area, he didn't even seem concerned that she was talking to a total stranger. I hope that Kerianne keeps her wits about her and that her smarts will tell her which strangers to trust. I'll think of you often Kerianne!