My mother always instilled in us, values, good manners, boundaries, respect of all things and people from all walks of life. I have taught my children the same and so have my sister and brothers We set them out into the world, knowing right from wrong, and standing up for it. Children need and want attention, crave discipline, want to be told no. If we teach them that way, they will become upstanding citizens of our society. My husband always says to me "Your children fear you" my response is "They need to fear someone!". I always told them if you think you are going to do something wrong, remember my face because it's the face you are going to see when you get home after I have found out what you did". I have a few scenarios to share, of life in the gritty town where I have lived my whole life, and have a front row seat of how it has changed over decades of time. It's sad our world has come to this, I know all people are not bad, but the bad ones sure do make it uneasy for the rest of us.
"Teach your children what you believe in, make a world that we can live in" - CSNY
Story 1
I was driving home around 10:00 on a Sunday morning along our main street, and saw a young man beating a young woman with his fists. He had her by the hair, punching her, screaming at her and cursing, she seemed terrified and was crying (wouldn't you). I was in a line of traffic stopped at a red light, and thought surely there has to be someone, in one of the cars that were already stopped at the light, to get out and stop him (silly me). Over the few minutes of the light being red, I am sad to say no one stopped to help her, they looked the other way. I pulled over, scared, yes I was scared, but couldn't not watch him do this, WHO does this to another human being. I rolled my window down and shouted if he didn't stop, I was calling the police. His verbal anger turned towards me, as HE continued to beat her. The traffic in front of me moved along. I rolled my window up, sat there and dialed 911. Before the police came they both walked to a nearby gas station. I followed them with my eyes to see where they went. When the police arrived they asked me where they went and to follow them to point him out. I was still scared, but knew I had to do the right thing. She was on a pay phone, still crying, was red, black and blue from the beating she endured. The police grabbed him and I told them yes it was him. They took him away, and she denied that he was beating her! The policeman told me "Ma'am it was very honorable what you did, but she will bail him out of jail tomorrow and HE will do it again. I looked at her, asked her why she would let anyone do that to her, told her there were many local shelters to get help, the next time she may not be so lucky. SHE told ME to mind my own business. I was shaking driving my car home, it rattled me to my bones to think that she would ever let another person treat her that way. Then I thought, she was never taught that people should not treat her that way, she had no self respect. Would I do it again if I saw that same scene today - You betcha I would! No one has the right to put their hands on you, NO ONE.
Story 2
My daughter purchased our old house from us, it's on the same street as our new house. We have lived on the same street for over 25 years. She came home from work and decided she was going to write bills out, so took her wallet/checkbook upstairs to her computer room and her phone rang. She answered it, talked for awhile then fell asleep in her bed. She woke up because the phone rang again, had a conversation and then went for her wallet. It wasn't where she thought she put it. After looking around upstairs she went downstairs. She thought she forgot to close her garage door, so she checked it, it was closed. But when she turned around to go back inside the house, she noticed her back door frame on top of her car. Then she looked outside and saw footprints in the snow. Now she was awake! She called 911 and the police came. She was robbed in her own house while she was sleeping in her bed. She later found out through his confession, that he picked her house because it was the only one that didn't have inside or outside lights on. This person broke through her back door, hinges, frame, double lock, dead bolt and all, and she never heard it. This in home robbery could have went really, really bad in so many ways, he walked through her whole house and saw her sleeping in bed, she never woke up. He proceeded to use her credit cards (no one asked for ID) and her SS card was missing. He not only stole those things, but her sense of security in her own home. NO ONE has the right to do that! The irony was he was the same age as her. She leads a productive life, works for everything she has. HE, on the other hand, robs people and steals to get the things he has. He was caught the very same night, about 2 hours later with our help. My daughter was on the phone calling the credit card companies asking them about his transactions on her cards, and then cancelling them, and I was relaying that information to the police. After he was caught, her anger set in. She told the court system she wanted restitution, every penny he made in jail, she wanted. He has children, and leads a life of crime! This wasn't the first time he did what he did. HE was never taught you don't take what doesn't belong to you, you will get caught and there are consequences.
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