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Do The Right Thing:
Make Sure Your Children Are
Safe
My son is a pretty big guy – 6’3” tall,
solid build, has good instincts and walks with the
confidence of a 19-year old who has his whole life ahead of
him. But I worry about him. He is away at college.
I’m sure I am like millions
of other dads around the country who has a son or daughter
away at college who wonder if they will be safe. Safe from
what? We aren’t sure, but we read about terrible things
happening every day and when your children aren’t “safe at
home,” then a parent worries about them. But I don’t worry
quite as much about my son as I did when he first went away
to college. Let me tell you why.
As we were saying our
goodbyes in his dorm room a few months back, I told him that
I know he feels as though he can handle anything, but I had
bought something that I wanted him to carry with him
whenever he could possibly be walking in an area where there
may be danger. I handed him a Triple Action Mace spray that
is the ultimate in street protection. Of course he scoffed
at me and was embarrassed at having to take it (I wouldn’t
take a no) and gave me a very insincere-sounding “o.k.” when
I forced him to tell me he would carry it when he felt he
might need it. Of course, I went away feeling that in his
mind, that occasion would be “never.”
But circumstances altered
that feeling. And my son’s outlook has forever changed. No
longer does he think that there is no possible danger
lurking around corners. Unfortunately, he has experienced
it himself and he now recognizes the real world for what it
is, and it is not a nice view. There are people out there
who are up to no good.
It happened one weekend
evening after a football game on campus. My son and a
couple of his classmates were wandering into the nearby
village to grab a bite to eat and to see what was
happening. Unfortunately, they found more than they were
bargaining for. In one of the town’s eateries, they
encountered some local girls, not students at their college,
and they all joined together for some food and
conversation. One or two of them might have exchanged names
and phone numbers.
On their way home they were
stopped by a group of young men who wanted to know what they
were doing “messing with their women.” The male residents
of the village, it seems, are protective and jealous of
college boys invading their “territory”. Although they were
outnumbered by a man, my son and his friends were not
intimidated and told the intruders to “get out of their
way.”
One of the village boys
then struck one of my son’s friends with a bat, injuring him
badly, and a brawl ensued. It didn’t last long, thankfully,
for police were nearby and stopped the action. The local
boys scattered. My son’s friend ended up in the hospital
and he and his other buddy suffered some injuries, but not
serious enough to be treated.
It seems that this
village-college feud had been going on forever. The
“townies” just don’t like the “gownies” to invade their
territory and steal their girl friends. “‘Twas always
thus.” That experience was enough to convince my
son to carry my gift to him whenever he ventured into town,
or anywhere else, for that matter, where he felt there could
be trouble. And it served him well on one occasion when a
mild scuffle took place in town several months later. When
he and a girl he was with were threatened by several young
men and they began to attack, he used the Triple Action Mace
on them. The combination of pepper, tear gas and UV marking
dye totally incapacitated the three intruders and made them
wish they had never thought of approaching the couple. The
pepper spray causes eyes to slam shut, plus uncontrollable
coughing and choking. The tear gas causes profuse tearing,
an intense burning sensation to the face and
disorientation. And the dye marks the assailants and aids
in later identification and apprehension – if they are able
to leave the scene.
Needless to say, the word
got around and townies aren’t so anxious to protect their
territory any more. And my son’s friends called their
parents and asked them to provide them with the same Triple
Action Mace my son used. It was a learning experience, a
tough one, but one that will serve them all well. If you
want to find out more about Triple Action Mace, go to: www.yoursecurityandsafety.com/tripleaction.htm |
