By Jackie Keating
Last Friday, Craig and Emily Johnson were enjoying a night out together when they received a distressed call from Jenny Smith, the 16-year-old they hired to babysit their son for the evening.
“She asked me if there was a secret room anywhere in the house where Andy [our 6-year-old son] likes to play,” Craig said. “I thought this was a little odd, but when I asked her why she wanted to know she just told me that everything was fine and that she was looking for something else to do to keep him occupied until we got back.”
Craig and Emily decided to return home early, and they were especially confused to find Andy asleep on the front porch.
“When I walked in the front door, I saw that the house was a disaster,” Emily said. “There were couch cushions on the floor, kitchen chairs overturned, closet doors open and toys everywhere. And on top of all that, there were Oreo cookies spread throughout the hallway. I didn’t quite understand that.”
It was then that Jenny appeared from one of the bedrooms looking panicked and frazzled.
“She had worked herself into a sweat,” Craig said. “She was throwing cookies, whispering Andy’s name and shaking a baby rattle as if she was looking for a pet or something. Looking back, it was actually a pretty funny scene.”
Upon seeing the sleepy Andy in his mother’s arms, all Jenny could say was, “Oh, so um … you found him?”
“I guess I should have told her that sometimes Andy likes to wander outside,” Emily said. “At least she knows now.”
By Jackie Keating
Upon being questioned, Jenny said she thought she had made it clear hiding outside was off limits, but she went on to admit she
Image by Zachary Anderson
might need to be a bit less trusting when it comes to playing with 6-year-olds.
“Hide-and-seek was a bad idea,” she said, shaking her head.
Jackie Keating is a freshman communication management and design major who’s just gonna play freeze tag next time. E-mail her at [email protected].