My hands are shaking as I write this. I’m so mad, terrified and relieved.
At 3:30 this afternoon I got a phone call from a strange man who said, “Is this Shawn’s mom?”
“I have a son, Sandor,” I was driving along, listening to NPR.
“Well, I have him here in my truck ma’am.”
My heart stopped and I hit the brakes.
“Why? Where are you, he’s supposed to be on the bus, on the way home?” I couldn’t control my voice.
“Yes ma’am, I saw him on the side of the road crying and I picked him up, can you tell me where I should take him?”
All I could think was ‘please don’t hang up, please stay on the line’. But I said, “Oh my God. Can I speak to Sandor please?”
“Of course,” he said.
I could hear Sandor crying. My boy was sniffing and crying. “Mom?”
“Sweetie, are you ok?” I was trying not to to scream or cry. Tears washed down my face. “Give the man our address but stay on the phone. Ok?”
My son recited our address to the stranger. The man said something about knowing where we lived. Then he drove my crying son home. We stayed on the phone the entire time. Sandor had gotten confused about his after school schedule. He thought he was supposed to go to Taekwondo but no one was there.
Sandor waited in the parking lot for 15 minutes, crying in the cold rain. He didn’t know what to do. He is nine so he didn’t have a phone.
This man, who said his name was Shane Knight said he drove by, saw the little boy crying and shivering so he pulled over. He did not kidnap or murder my son. He took him home.
The stranger got back on the phone with me and said, “I’m giving your son a card. I clean carpets so if you carpets need cleaning give me a call.”
“Where are you now?” I asked, still not trusting him but praying to God I could.
“In your driveway.”
I owe this man my life, my soul my world. If you are reading this and live in Garlnad County please, promise me, you’ll throw some business his way. His name is Shane and he works for Super Clean. Thier number is 800-537-3714. He’s my hero and I love him.
If you have a child who rides a bus make sure you understand their policy on this sort of thing. I dont think little kids need phones but Sandor will get a pre-paid on this week, to keep in his back pack. The world has changed.
For the rest of my life I will be thanking God with every fiber of my being for Shane.
When I got home Sandor and I hugged and hugged on my bed. He said, “While I was waiting I prayed.”
“And God sent you and angel, didnt’ he?”
Sandor nodded his head then laughed for the first time. “He had tattoos, that means he was an angel with tattoos.”
I kissed the top of his head. “Yeah, it does.”
