Jodie Norton, a blogger and novelist from southern Utah, recently shared a terrible story involving the two boys that left her ill and glad. Jodie was bathing one morning when she felt acute stomach discomfort, forcing her to bring her 10- and 8-year-old sons to the hospital. She called a neighbor for help, but a miscommunication left her sons waiting for 40 minutes outside the emergency clinic.
She later found that her boys had seen three strangers at this time—an adult female and two males—who tried to entice them into the restroom by claiming they needed aid and convincing a guy to seek medical attention. The lads politely rejected it, remembering a family rule: “Adults don’t ask kids for help.”
CJ, Jodie’s eldest son, claimed that he recognized the folks as “tricky people” because of their need for assistance, since adults would not generally seek assistance from youngsters. This information came from a notion known as “tricky people,” which teaches youngsters about spotting worrisome behavior rather than focusing simply on strangers. Pattie Fitzgerald, the author of Safely Ever After, developed the idea and exhorts parents to teach their children about the behaviors of “tricky people,” highlighting the fact that adults can also fall into this category.
As her sons related the event and how their understanding of “tricky people” had potentially spared them from a deadly scenario, Jodie was both surprised and grateful. The boys’ attentiveness and commitment to the family norm kept them safe from the strangers’ trap. Jodie applauded her kid for his fast thinking and for heeding the safety instructions she had given him.
Jodie told her readers that the authorities had been notified of the event and that they would be studying the hospital’s CCTV video to learn more about the strangers’ behavior. Jodie’s tale is a powerful reminder of the necessity of educating children on how to detect and respond to potentially harmful circumstances, which will keep them safe and aware in an increasingly complicated world.