 |
| By Lisa Kenneally |
|
It was Monday October 17, a clear crisp Fall morning, my husband and I had just dropped our daughter off at school. We took our younger son (Sam, 3 yrs old) and our dog out for some morning fun down at the park near the skating rink. We especially like to let Sam and the dog run around where all the winter time sledding happens near the Farragut statue. Anyway, Sam was walking around picking up some of the mutli colored leaves that had fallen to the ground, running up to me and saying, "Mommy, look at this one, it's really red", he was thrilled. The dog was in her glory running with the biggest tree branch she could find. My husband and I were sipping our coffee, it was a perfect picture of a boy and his dog playing. I thought I'd join in on the leave gathering since Sam was so excited about all the colors. I walked down the slight incline toward him. When I looked down I saw a needle lying in the grass. It was obviously a used needle. My husband picked it up, wrapped it up so that nobody could get stuck with it and placed it in a nearby barrel. (Which I'm sure is not the proper way to dispose of it, but at least it would be off the ground) I panicked and all off a sudden the "what ifs" started running through my mind: What if he had picked it up?!! What if he ran up to me and said "Mommy, look at this!" What if he stuck himself with it?!! What if he played with it and I never saw him?!! What if there were more nearby?!! What if someone else saw it, left it there and a different child found it? What if our perfectly innocent morning turned tragic?!! Needless to say we left immediately.
I felt that I had to share this story. I know it was only one needle, but unfortunately I'm sure there are plenty more around our parks and playgrounds. What should we be doing if we see drug paraphernalia around? Should we call the police? Should we leave it alone? Should we put it into the garbage? It sickens me to see what's happening with the drug abuse problem that has plagued South Boston. I hope that this prompts a response from the appropriate agency informing people how to handle a "what if" situation.
Just for the record both my husband and I are life long South Boston residents, as are our parents. We truly remember South Boston the way it was and had hoped that our children could experience it too. We feel saddened that we won't be able to pass on the sense of greatness about "Southie" that we feel down deep in our souls.
Thank you for your time.
 |
