There’s a Pedophile at My Pool
Last night, without any grace or coordination, I was bouncing and flouncing my way through a water aerobics class in our neighborhood pool when I caught the eye of a man.
He was bare-chested, appropriately clad in swimming trunks and easily preying in 5 feet of water. He was surrounded by three prepubescent girls. Maybe the one he was holding a little too closely was his daughter. I did hear Daddy ripple over the water. I have no way to know, no reason to judge how this man was playfully engaging with bikinis draped across newly-forming breasts and hips that had only begun to curve. There was nothing in his public display that should have set off alarms but as soon as our eyes met, I knew.
I’ve seen that look before and in the second it took for me to lose the aerobic routine’s rhythm, he felt my confusion and a little too promptly, a little too harshly, he released his playful, ticklish hold from under her arms and pushed the child away from his body. It was simply happenstance that our glances crossed, an inadvertent sway of my head as I moved my body to the instructor’s beat, but the immediate, defiant tilt of his chin and clandestine glint in his eye told a story, a narrative I know too well.
I’m not prone to hysteria or conclusions. I tend to seek explanations and champion the underdogs, but I’ve also learned with time and experience to trust my instincts. Last night my soul screamed and my gut whispered…he’s one of them. If you’ve been abused, if you’ve been witness to your own slaying, you know what I’m talking about. You know about the little voice you learn to hear; the whistle and hum that starts softly and resounds quickly to tighten the pace of your heart and tingle your spine.
My body’s response was so intense last night, my instincts screaming so loudly, I’d sit at the feet of mercy and put it all on the line if asked to testify and accuse.
Do you ever have that feeling…a gut check so extreme it haunts you for days?
Every place I’ve looked or ventured today I am stalked once again by the statistics—1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually assaulted before they turn 18.
I shouldn’t be surprised. With 800 homes in my subdivision, I’m sure there’s more than one pedophile at my pool, or at your pool, at my playground or at yours. They’re everywhere, aren’t they.
Maybe your senses are a little hyper stimulated from the story you’re capturing about this kind of abuse. Maybe not but it’s a thought.
Midlife Slicess last blog post..Money In The Bank – Vacation
Always trust your gut. The one time that I didn’t I will always regret.
WickedStepMoms last blog post..Random Tuesday Thoughts: But He is on Oxygen!!
I agree with wicked step mom always trust your gut. He knew what you were thinking and if he were not guilty he would not have thrust her out of his arms.
I also agree with midlife slices you are hyper stimulated in what you are writing about. That is why this guy felt and looked as guilty as he most likely is. I am always looking for that perp that is oohgeling over a young and unsuspected child. Trust your gut and keep an eye out for this man, and if you continue to suspect him then you must report him.
I feel for you and the pain that you are experiencing right now. This is not one that will go out of your head for a while.
Has Aaron named that calf yet?
XOXOX
Trust your gut feeling … in some cases, as is here, it is so much better safe than sorry! Hugs to you.
Amy @ Five Flower Moms last blog post..Wordless/Wordful Wednesday – See What I Found!
What Mrs. Tricia’s Mom just said. In spades.
Aaron’s naming a calf? Of the bovine kind, or has he developed an attachment for one of his legs below the knee?
Jans last blog post..Talk is Cheap
Jan,
Mrs. Tricia’s Mom and Dad are hobby farming with a little herd of miniature cows, and one of them just had a new calf…a little bull that Aaron is supposed to name. When my mom called Aaron the other night to tell him the calf had been born and to ask if Aaron had thought of a name, he said, “I’ve thought about it all day and all night and all the way into the universe and I still don’t know.” I asked him again last night and he said, “Mommy, stop bothering me. I promise I’ll know something on Monday.”
I will be looking for that name on Monday.
To funny. I love that he knows his mind and speaks it.
Love to my little man
XOXOX
I’ve seen that look too…as if they are enjoying those young bodies rubbing against their own. It’s disgusting.
Maybe you and Aaron can check out this website.
http://www.funpetnames.com/male-pet-names.html
In the column of the left you can browse by animal.
http://www.mypetpals.com/pnab.html
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Monica, thanks so much for the links. These will certainly get the conversation going!!
Your story just gave me the chills. I’m with everyone else… trust your gut. If you got “that” feeling and then he acted strangely then you’re probably right.
Caseys last blog post..Funky Foto Flashback: Cool And The Gang
Have to go with the crowd here and say trust your gut.
Smart Mouth Broads last blog post..THE MAKING OF A BIKER CHICK-Yellowstone National Park