Because there are no accidents involving kids in 2016…no tragic incidents where children are concerned.  Whenever anything bad happens….like a child being left in a hot car….or a child getting into a gorilla habitat at the zoo….or a child walkin’ in water along the shoreline of a DISNEY resort being snatched up by an alligator, we blame and shame the parents.  Saying that it would have NEVER happened to my child because I would have done such and such.

Bad things happen, People.  Sometimes, no matter how careful you are, an accident can happen.  You can always Monday quarterback a situation but at the end of the day, when a child DIES, our first thoughts should be empathy and compassion. A child is DEAD, and all over social media people are talking about the parents and asking why they would let their child have fun at a Disneyworld resort “beach” (there’s sand so to a toddler from Nebraska and for me…that’s a beach), and why didn’t they adhere to the NO SWIMMING (not beware of Alligators) signs (because we all know walking alongside the edges of a body of water is swimming), and why didn’t they know that every body of water in Florida has at least 10 alligators in it.  I could go on and on about the stuff I’ve read.

I had to stop reading, and stop commenting.  I was getting mad at the perfect parents (some who don’t even have children) and the alligator experts.  Someone even asked why the alligators were killed?  Really?  And that came from a PARENT.  No compassion…no sympathy….just looking to place blame and shame.

As a parent, my heart goes out to the parents of that little boy.  They probably looked forward to this magical trip to The Happiest Place on Earth for months.  I’m sure they counted down the days….and happily boarded the plane to Orlando, kids in tow, NEVER expecting that what happened would happen.  That they would lose their son to an alligator RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM, get no sleep while the lagoon was searched for their child’s body, then have to identify that tiny lifeless body drowned by a horrific animal, pack up their son’s clothes and toys, and make that return trip back to Nebraska without him.  I can’t imagine their hurt and pain.  I can’t imagine having to pick out a funeral home,  clothes, and a tiny casket for a burial after that vacation turned nightmare.

I know this blog isn’t going to make a difference because as I type..somebody is still asking “where were the parents…how’d they let this happen?”, because in 2016, that’s what we do.  Only PERFECT parenting is allowed…no mistakes.  While others are doing that, I will be over here as an imperfect parent saying a silent prayer for the family and that they are able to get through this devastating ordeal, and praying for my own child that a tragic ACCIDENT like this or similar never happens to her.  Because I know if it does, I will be blamed and shamed by all of social media.  (Photo from a FB mom whose child was at that very spot with his feet in the water about 30 minutes earlier)…

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