B-A-N-A-N-A-S

So I'm driving down Compton Road tonight about 6, on my way from home my department's spring picnic. (Spending the day at Winton Woods grilling out is tough!)

And walking down the side of road are two little kids, a boy and a girl. Now Compton Road is busy and there is no sidewalk, so it was basically like seeing two little aliens walking down road it was such a foreign sight. Traffic was backing up to go around them and in front of me a big white windowless van (i.e. child molester van) was stopped behind them.

Hmmm...

The van was making me nervous because I kept thinking whoever was driving was going to stuff these little kids in it. Not to be all prejudiced against windowless white van drivers, but come on. It didn't look like a plumbing van is all I'm saying.

After the van passes and the car in front of me passes I pull up beside them and ask if they're lost. The little boy, who's wearing a bicycle helmet, tells me no, they're not lost but they're walking around until they find their house. I'm thinking there's no way these kids' mom knows they're walking down Compton Road, so I pull over. In behind me pulls over another car.

I ask the little boy if he's lost again and ask if knows his phone number. He tells me his phone number and I ask his mom's name. About that time the guy who pulled in behind me walks over to us and he and I look at each other, bewildered.

The little girl tells me her name is Isabella and his name is Drew and she's 6 and he's 5 and they were playing at the creek behind his house but then they started walking down the creek and weren't sure where they were. They were completely calm and unperturbed, just carrying creek sticks and figuring they'll wander home eventually.

So I call the little boys' phone number and a hysterical woman answers.

"Is this Natalie?" I ask. Now here I'm wondering what to say to a mom in this situation. Hey, your kid nearly got hit by 10 cars on Compton Road, better come get him! Or, Hey Nat, your little boy and the neighbor girl wandered off, it's all good though, I got 'em!

I said something like, Umm... I have your little boy Drew here on Compton Road. And she starts flipping. I mean flipping. I tell her it's ok, they're safe, they just seem to have gotten a bit lost. She tells me they play at the creek all time, but 10 minutes passed, then 20, then 30. She's telling me all this through tears of course.

I try to tell her where I am but I really have no clue where I am (I'm only there for a picnic, after all). Fortunately the guy behind me lives around there so I hand him my phone so he can tell her where we are.

As we're waiting I chat some more with the kids, they tell me where they go to school, how they got lost, etc., and the guy and I start chatting about how we were both freaked out by the van and how upset the mom must be. Little Drew hears this and asks me if his mom is mad at him.

I tell him she's not mad, she's just upset because she didn't know where he was and that she'll be happy to see him, but she might still be upset when she comes to get him. So he turns to Isabella, his Compton Road partner-in-crime and says, "We're just going to keep walking."

No-no-no, I tell him. Your mom is coming to get you so you have wait. I pat him reassuringly on his bicycle helmet and tell him again she's not mad at him. The guy next to me also reassures him that while mommy may be upset, she's just worried and will be happy to see him.

I tell the guy I just came from a picnic and that I work at Children's and he's like, "Oh! What do you do?" all excited like. I tell him. Then he tells me he's an "ER doc" at Mercy-something-or-other and shakes my hand. (I feel like I disappointed him by not being a doctor or something.) Just then a black Honda Odyssey rolls up and out jumps Natalie, tears streaking her face and saying, "I cannot tell you how thankful I am. I cannot tell you how thankful I am."

So I hug her. She doesn't hug me back though. I figure because she's so upset. Or maybe I'm just the weird girl who just hugs hysterical moms. Whatever.

So then she tells the two kids to get into the van. They walk toward the van and she tells us the creek is in their backyard and he's never gotten lost before and she was looking everywhere and she's trying not to cry and thanking us profusely and then here comes Drew again. And I'm thinking, "Kid! Lay low! Just be quiet. Your mom is gonna flip'!"

And what's Drew say in the midst of all this? He walks over, looks up at her with these big blue eyes and long dark eyelashes and says, "Mom, can I sit in the front seat?"