Little Lost Jia Jia

I would just like to address how easy it is to lose a child.

I consider Roy and I to be fairly careful individuals when it comes to our children. We are constantly watching the kids and double checking where they are. We make them hold our hands, or they have to walk beside us, depending on where we are. But even the best of parents can end up losing a kid.

At the zoo, we had been watching the baboons (highly entertaining when they are fighting). Anyway, Roy, his mother, Kenzie and Jia started to walk away. I called out to Roy that I would catch up with them later.

So I continued to shoot some pictures… then walked on to the elephant area. When I caught up with Roy, I saw Grandma Geri and Kenzie, but no Jia. Roy looked at me and asked “Where’s Jia?”

I told him "Isn't she with you? She was walking behind you when you walked away."

That's when the realization set in that something had gone horribly wrong.

Panic…. Where the hell is she?

I yelled out her name, and someone came up to me and said, “She’s back there…” pointing to where the baboon area was.

Roy immediately walked back to find her sobbing for her mama. Evidently, she must have changed her mind about going with daddy and wanted to stay at the baboon area – but she didn’t tell mommy or daddy. And she wasn't even near me when I had begun walking away, or I would have seen her at that point. Both Roy and I made the assumption she was with the other because we didn't see her.

It made my heart sink to think that something bad could have happened to her. Even worse, I would blame myself if it had – I would have beaten myself up over it and wondered what was wrong with me that I didn’t watch her more carefully – assumptions or no assumptions. It would have been too easy for someone to step in and talk her into leaving with them… And it felt so good to hold her in my arms, to know she was safe. I can say that for the rest of the day – she was right by our sides and didn’t wander off anywhere.

So… communication and taking nothing for granted are the watchwords for both of us. And perhaps, Jia will appreciate more what it means to stay with one of us, rather than going off on her own without telling us. I want her to understand that we may be strict sometimes on what she can or cannot do, but it's because we love her.