Good people!

It was the 15th of August a few years ago. My son was about 8 years old. His favorite toy was the two wheeled scooter with which you can whiz past people in no time. It was a hot afternoon, and people were out in their front yards washing cars, mowing lawns, and carrying out weekend tasks. Children were playing. I had just washed my hair. Junior wanted to ride his scooter outside. I asked dad to keep an eye, dad said he needed a nap after mowing the lawn. So I mumbled under my breath and walked out on the driveway to look for kiddo who was probably at the end of the street taking a turn.

Nope, I did not see him. I went further down into the street, and yet no sign of him. I ran to the end of the street and asked my friend there if he had seen the little guy. He said yes, he was here riding the scooter! A chill ran down my spine. Where was he? I ran down to the cul-de-sac, from where a hike and bike trail goes around the whole subdivision and looked around, no sign of him at all. I ran back home, and told my husband. He was recovering from a knee surgery, and was not the best runner at that point of time. I ran the other way down the main road, into the adjacent street........... but he was nowhere to be seen! Tears were streaming down my face now, and I decided to put on something on my feet, it was not a good idea running all over bare foot.

Meanwhile, the people in my street realized what had happened. My husband, and four other neighbors set out on bikes to scour the bike trails. There was a brother and sister pair who lived on our street, and they both set out on their bikes, walkie talkie in hand, with the other handset with their mom. Everyone was really worried because everyone knew my son was almost non verbal, and were not sure if he knew how to go around the place.

That was one thing I was not worried about, because, in spite of very limited language, he is always very good with directions. Autistic people are like that. They have some strong features. I ran into other streets where other people asked me what he was wearing and started looking. Soon there were a few cars driving slowly all over the place. Twenty minutes passed, I was beside myself with worry. I picked up the phone and called 911. The cop was at the door in no time. He asked me the details and drove away.

I was running helter-skelter again trying to look for my baby. Then one person asked me if he could swim. My heart sank. There were lakes on the trails, but he always kept away from the banks.  The worst thoughts go through your mind at such times! What if someone ran him over? What if someone just picked him up and drove away?
Just then, the mom with the walkie talkie ran up to me and said, "my kids called, they found him at .........."! I looked at her in disbelief and ran to get the car keys, I was so relieved that I could not figure out where the cross street was! I got there in two minutes and hugged him, and the two kids who found him, they were both just a couple of years older than my son. I saw the cop drive by, I told him I had found my boy. I also saw several cars take a u-turn and head back home.

So many people I did not even know were looking for my son. I thanked as many of them as I could. They all said the same thing, 'would you have not looked if my child was missing?' It was a good lesson that day, about how good people exist everywhere, and how they are out helping you even you have not asked them to. I will never forget that Indian Independence day party we had that night, where people asked me if I had a fight and had cried a lot. My story was one big conversation piece that evening!

March Madness

March Madness is always used with respect to basketball. However, there is a certain madness in my backyard too, at this time of the year. Things are all waking up after winter and then there is a sudden liveliness all over. Birds are scurrying to find places to build nests. The poor things have fewer and fewer places to nest now, thanks to us Humans!

Last year, as I went to pull the hose from the side of the house, I saw something! At a very precarious spot, I spotted this nest. It was on this wooden ledge between the two pickets. This area is in between the two homes, and when it gets windy, the little strip acts like a connection from the back to the front, and is just not the place for a bird's nest. Sure enough, in a couple of weeks, as I went to check, I found broken eggshells on the grass below. It was so poignant to see the bird sitting around for a few days.

This season started out after a long and dragged out winter. One morning when I stepped out into the backyard, I felt some movement overhead. I looked up and realized that we were not the only ones inhabiting the home, we had a tenant. Sitting in the rain drain, was this sweet looking thing. I was once again very worried for her. Rain drain??? Is that safe? A heavy shower could just wash her abode away.

Then I looked again, she had used her little brain this time. Look at the spot she chose! It is before the point where the pipe bringing water from the roof connects to the drain that carries it away. She was relatively safe.

 In the beginning she was not happy when we stepped into the backyard or sat out on the patio. She would get restless and stare at me in the eye. I took a few pictures of her. We would sit out there on the patio. She soon realized that she was safe. We all shared the space together. The neighbors had dogs, and she probably did not like all that barking. Here it was quieter.

I hope to hear little chirps in a few days. I also hope we can step out there without being pecked at or being scolded for going out while the babies were napping! I look forward to some interesting times ahead!