Wednesday's Memory 2-18-09 "Everything is fine"

My first born son, John Michael Corbett at age 3

The following memory I shall never forget, it has been embedded in my mind forever..

As I still hear the words:
"Don't be alarmed "Everything is fine" The boys are in their beds asleep, but I know you want to know why I am here."

Actually as we drove up our street that was what I was thinking, when I saw the Mom of our sitter.
We left the children with Debbie her teenage daughter because her sister Donna who was our regular sister and older had to go to an after-school activitity and she would not be back by 6:30 the time we had to go on our listing appointment in town less than 5 minutes away.
Before we left we said to John Michael, 3 years old, a very bright child.
"Mommy and Daddy need to go to your friend Faustos's house to talk with his parents on business and we will be back really soon. Be good and listen to Debbie, Donna's sister and play with your trucks. Debbie is going to watch you and Mark"
He understood we hugged and left, no crying he went to his Tonka trucks and was fine.
SO we thought.........

We asked what happened? Why are you here?

Debbie called me all upset. She said "I was changing Mark and I had left John Michael sitting by the sliders playing with his trucks. I told him I'll be right back that I was going to go and change his brother's diaper.
He shook his head yes.
When I came back to the kitchen He was gone, I went outside and called him, He didn't seem to be around.

Debbie said you left at 6:25 and would be back by 8:00 It was 7:15 when I arrived. I told her we need to call the police. As I was about to call, there was at your front screen door 2 teens and there was John Michael smiling that he had been on quite an exciting adventure.
I opened the door and he ran to Debbie and said,
"Look what I have!"
In his little hand he was holding a nickel.
We asked what had happened.
He said, "I went to see Mommy and Daddy. I knew where I was going. I know Fausto's house behind Bellows."
The girls then spoke and said that is what he said when we saw him walking alone on River Road near Bellow's Funeral Parlor.
We asked him where he lived. He said he knew but would not tell us. So we took the coin out of our pocket and said," Will you show us where you live if we give you this shiny coin?"
"Yes, so we held his hand and here we are right to the door. "

Unbelievable!!

As my DH and I thought about this incident hours later, we couldn't imagine how he went by so many neighbor's houses and no one saw this little one walking along by himself.
We lived at the top of a hill. His journey took him down the hill past 4 houses, then a left on to Holiday Drive, he walked past another 24 houses 12 on each side to the main road, River Road.
There he went past more houses, an elementary school that he would be going to, and the cars on the street.
It was in front of Bellows , 2 blocks further from the school that the teens saw him and approached him and brought him home.
Anyone could have picked him up. We thanked God so much for this not happening and placing these 2 friendly teens at the right moment to meet John Michael. "Praise the Lord"

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