Child safety tips for shopping malls

It is every parent’s nightmare. A trip to the local mall interrupted by the heart-stopping realization that their child is missing. A blanket of disbelief thrown over a parent, rushing in every direction, and getting nowhere all at once. Numbly being led, finally, to a security booth, in which half-hearted description tinged with self-blame and remorse are given. How to remember what was worn, when it was just a quick trip in for a last minute gift? One’s mind shuts down, remembering only phone numbers of people to call. Shame echoing in and around the room and a child is led in. Not yours, but someone’s grief is lifted, you think. Half of your brain is listening to your child’s name, words thrown out into the void, looking for an ear, a look, a sign, God, please. They bring him in to you.

A flood is released, and you’ve heard that before but this is a flood. Relief, anger, fear (did anyone touch you look at you anything to you) and you leave the mall, promising your higher power never to let your child leave the house again. Hands shaking, you drive home, checking the rearview mirror the entire ride, as if he could magically slip back into that slippery void so narrowly missed. The same thought keeps doing laps in your head: “This must never happen again!”

How can we accomplish that? Here are some tips for taking your child out in public.

The first and most important piece of advice anyone may impart is this:

This is not the world in which you grew up, and you may not rely on the kindness of strangers.

Teaching this to your child, while seeming brutally realistic and anti-childhood, may save her life.

Some very basic things to teach your child are:

1. Do not speak to strangers when alone.

2. Do not believe strangers, even when mentioning a parent’s name.

3. Run and yell.

This all seems basic, and good common sense, but a recent trip to our local mall found more than one young mother engrossed in a cell phone call, while their little darling roamed around nearby. Pay attention. There are predators who want your children, and it truly cannot be simpler than that.

A mall is a festival for the senses. It is set up that way. Marketers are clamoring for attention, and your child can very easily be distracted by a billboard or moving advertisement. If your child is too big for a stroller, then hold his hand, or invest in a little ‘buddy bracelet’. A buddy bracelet is a restraint, but for your child’s sake, let’s call it a bracelet. They may be purchased at most law-enforcement stores, or online. Some misguided idealists may see this as a violation of a child’s right to freedom, but a child small enough to be snatched at a mall may be OK to have their freedom infringed upon for an hour or so.

Finally, practice responsibility and common sense. Do not allow yourself to be so engrossed in your shopping experience that you lose sight over your main responsibility: the well- being and safety of your child.