Thursday, May 31, 2012

Violated

We were robbed today.  In the middle of the day.  I had been gone for less than four hours.  In that amount of time, people entered our house, took our belongings and left me feeling so incredibly vulnerable.

I didn't notice anything at first.  I noticed my downstairs computer wasn't where I left it.  It wasn't until I walked into my room and found half of my clothing drawers emptied onto the ground.  I asked my kids which one of them had pulled out all my clothes.  It only took a minute or two for me to realize this was not an inside job.  Of course, in that minute or two, Rhode outright declared that he had seen Scarlet commit the deed with his own eyes.  That child.

For so many reasons, it is nice to be a house that is free of prescription drugs and hidden wads of cash, but it was especially useful today.  There are many things they could have taken that they did not.  I don't know why they didn't but in my frustration I can be grateful for that.  We will miss the things that were taken but nothing was irreplaceable or even held any kind of value other than monetary.

What they did take that I will never get back was my little safety bubble.  I know I don't live in the best of neighborhoods but I always felt like my crazy neighbors and I had an unspoken agreement.  If you live in this neighborhood, you don't have anything worth taking anyway.  The imaginary code has been broken.

While Rhode seems generally oblivious, Scarlet is very aware of everything that happened today.  Some of her comments have been, "I think they might have taken our stuff because they didn't have stuff and they thought that they needed more stuff."  Or "I am a little scared, but mom, when you say a prayer will you thank Heavenly Father that our family is safe even though bad people came in our house?"

Right before bed, she asked me, "Will they come back?"  I snuggled the two of them in my bed and we had a good chat about why they might have taken things from our house and why they wouldn't be coming back since mom and dad are there.

" Mom, I have an idea.  What if we leave a note on the front door that says

Dear robbers,
We are home now.  Do not come into our house to take our things.  We will be upstairs and we will come down and scare you!

Isn't that a good idea mom?"

And right before I turned off the lights in her room she said, "I love you mom!  Keep us safe!"

And at that moment I realized what was really making me feel so horrible about the whole ordeal.  It was one of those many times when you realize you can't protect your children from all of the bad out there.  Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, the bad is going to get in.

Tomorrow will be okay.  But tonight, I am going to let myself grieve at the loss of a little of my children's innocence.

19 comments:

Nichole Gaertner said...

I'm so sorry Kacey. Though our house hasn't been broken into, there have been four break-ins in our small cul-de-sac. It scares me so much. I want to protect my children 24/7. If anything were to ever happen to my children just because someone needs more money for drugs would kill me. I hope the Spirit comforts you tonight, and I am glad your family is safe.

Cunningham's said...

Oh Kacey. My heart dropped when I read this. I'm so sorry, tell Scarlet that Bri and Derek will pray for her family too!

Mindy said...

I know how you feel. They're safe. You're safe. Tonight before you go to bed you'll check on them and every door in the house, a couple times. Breath. Pray.

Julie Anne said...

I'm so sorry and so glad you guys are okay!!! My friends Chris and Anna were just robbed and they too went through all their drawers and pulled everything out. Their computers, Wii, tv's, bikes...none of that was taken. The cops think they were just looking for cash and drugs. But she too felt so violated. The news was saying today that violence and robberies have gone up due to job loss and bad economy. Ugh. Wish I could hug you and the kids right now. It's such a scary violating feeling. Sorry you and your family had to go through this. Lots of love.

Adrianne said...

Oh. My. Gosh. I felt sick reading your post and don't think I would've handled the situation as gracefully as you did. So glad you and your sweet family are physically safe, but so sad your trust and feelings of safety have been broken. Sending prayers to you and your family.

Adrianne said...

Oh. My. Gosh. I felt sick reading your post and don't think I would've handled the situation as gracefully as you did. So glad you and your sweet family are physically safe, but so sad your trust and feelings of safety have been broken. Sending prayers to you and your family.

The Mechams said...

Ooh heavens, i'm so sorry. I know that the"things" taken is rough, but having that kind of conversation with your babies breaks my heart. Hope you all can work though this quickly, but from what you wrote I think you'll be ok. Super mom to the rescue.

The Mechams said...

Ooh heavens, i'm so sorry. I know that the"things" taken is rough, but having that kind of conversation with your babies breaks my heart. Hope you all can work though this quickly, but from what you wrote I think you'll be ok. Super mom to the rescue.

Katie said...

I'm so sorry! When we were moving, our driveway was used as a parking spot for the people who robbed our next door neighbors. It happened in the middle of the day, and no one stopped them. They thought they were movers helping us! I don't know why, but they didn't take anything from our house. I am soooooooo sorry this happened. So glad you are safe.

SANDERSON / MCCONKIE FAMILY said...

So sorry....so stupid and unfair. One of my neighbors had a robber come in when she took her kids to school. He didn't know her middle school daughter was still in the house. Another house had two drive by shootings (disgruntled employee). This is an upper scale neighborhood in Utah. Getting the security back is the hardest. I never beleived in a security system but am glad we have one. Glad you are all okay!!!!

Sam and Rachel said...

So scary! I hate the feeling. We've had druggies try to break into our car 4 times in the last 2 years; they were successful only once. I felt so violated then. I can imagine a home robbery is much worse. The most recent car robbery attempt was a month ago and it totally freaked me and Christine out. She asks the same questions Scarlet did, about why they wanted to break in and if we will be safe. I'll be praying for your family.

Brad said...

This post makes me so sad. I remember getting robbed in our old house and it was still scary for me and I was like 13

Kristy said...

That's the worst! I like Scarlet's letter idea. Come move to Seattle! Actually, we've had a crazy crime spree here so maybe not.

camery said...

UGH! It's just awful on so many levels. I'm so sad your family has had to deal with something like this.

Campbell Family said...

Ohhh nooo. That's it. You need to move out here. Now. It's such a sickening feeling knowing that you can't protect your kids from everything, and I can't imagine how violated and weird you must feel. Thanks for still making me laugh for a second with Rhode's confession, lol.

caro.carru said...

Dang, that is a real bummer.

Stephanie Kay Moore said...

That feeling of vulnerability is worse than any tangible object being taken away. I am so sorry this happened to you!

A Bug's Life said...

this is just awful. So sorry. Scarlet's idea is awesome and I love how you snuggled them in and made them feel safe--Daishan

Samantha and Tyrel Ross said...

So sorry! How sad that your child was old enough to understand! It's easier when they don't!