gina_r_snape

Wow, so that whole balloon thing happened what, yesterday? It didn't take long for this to happen.

Today I saw on the morning news that there is suspicion of a hoax by the entire family. I sincerely hope this isn't true, because then it would be a colossal waste of resources -- not to mention potential travesty if those resources were needed for a real emergency. I hope these parents weren't that irresponsible.

But it reminds me of something that happened in my childhood. I grew up with two older brothers who are 7 and 10 years older than me. As a small child, I was often either tormented or ignored. Being so small, and the only girl, had distinct disadvantages. I decided once when I was maybe 4 years old to "get even" by hiding under my bed. My parents and brothers ran around shouting and looking for me and were surprisingly inept at finding me. I took great glee out of it, and distinctly remember giggling silently as they ran around shouting "Gina" and discussing where I might be. My friend down the block? The neighbor who always gave me chocolate covered cherries? My cousin around the corner? I hadn't asked permission to go. I was a very well-behaved child who didn't just run off...

I did not understand at the time what panic can overcome a parent at the thought of a missing child. I already well understood what it felt like to have people be mean to you, to ridicule you, to play games with your head, and to ignore you. But I did not yet understand loss. I certainly did not yet grasp empathy, or how my actions impacted others. I cannot say I ever learned these things from my family, having learned them largely on my own as a young adult, the hard way. But I digress.

When I heard that the child in this story was hiding somewhere in the house, it immediately brought me back to this childhood incident. I am curious to see how it unfolds, as we love nothing more as a nation than to tear such things apart. If the child is at fault, some interesting discussions on how to teach these things to children might ensue. But if it was a family hoax, I fear for all the children in that family, who do not understand how such actions impact a community both emotionally and financially. And their parents cannot teach it to them.