If Ever I Would Leave You

Sometimes I buckle my kids into their car seats and then go back in the house to use the bathroom before getting into the car to leave.
Sometimes I use the bathroom, transfer my cup of tea to a travel mug, and apply lip gloss before heading back out the door.
Sometimes I use the bathroom, transfer my tea, gloss lips, check my e-mail, and then hang out the laundry. I leave the drivers side door open and look out the window every now and then. They get along better when they're strapped into the car waiting to go somewhere than they would if they were in the house with me.
We all know the stories about the terrible things that can happen when children are left alone, even for a minute.
I heard about a mom who left her sleeping baby in the car while she and the child's older sibling attended music class. I read an article about a mom who was chastised by strangers for leaving her sleeping children in the car while she went inside a farm stand. By now everyone's heard of Kate and Gerry McCann, the English couple who left their three kids alone in their Portugal apartment house while they dined with friends. Their daughter Madeline is still missing.
We take our chances with our kids every day. Some of us take more chances than others. Some take chances that others of us couldn't conceive of, but we all take chances.

song: If Ever I Would Leave You • soundtrack: Camelot