It’s not about us…

I love my kids. I love, love, LOOOOVE them. I want to squish them until they pop and hold them tight so they don’t grow up. I want to hear them laugh, be child-like, climb trees, run through sprinklers, mess chocolate all over their faces, learn, discover, explore, adventure and I want to plan their next birthday party (yes, even though I just said I didn’t want them to grow up – you know what I mean), just like the majority of moms out there. Recently I was made aware of this GREAT campaign #carseatfullstop – raising awareness of the importance and car seat safety, and so I’m adding my voice to the many other bloggers and moms out there who care deeply…

Maybe you’re like me, and from the time you first had littlies, it’s been a pretty automatic move to strap your kids in. It becomes second nature like putting on their nappies or tying their shoelaces. And yes, absolutely, it totally infuriates me when I see kids who have not been safely buckled in. First I get all ragey and flap my arms and hoot my horn and then clam down, breathe and pray those little lives make it to their destination safely.

And then yesterday, I read this post about a young boy in the States who, only 2 weeks ago, wriggled out of his car seat and was in an accident, and didn’t make it. It is one of those posts which you want to stop reading, because it is nothing less than utterly heartbreaking and completely soul destroying, but your eyes won’t let you. And while, with the launch of this campaign, there is SO much amazing awareness, access to statistics, encouragement and valid rebuke around this topic, here is what I have been thinking about recently:

It is not about you (me).

It is not about you not making the mistake on the road. While we like to think we’re in control of most things, we really aren’t. We can’t control the natural disaster, sleepy or drunk driver, or the innocent yet flawed human causing a total accident. We may not be in the wrong, but that doesn’t mean we can stop it from happening.

It is not about convenience. It’s about safety never taking a holiday. It is about taking those few minutes to secure the harness. It’s not about ‘just down the street’ or ‘just around the corner’. It is also not like you have to run around the car 12 times and do 30 push ups before you are allowed to thread their arms through the straps and buckle them in.

And lastly, it is not just not about you, but it IS about them. Little lives that often aren’t heard (except maybe for the screaming of infants). Innocent lives, entirely dependant on forward thinking parents. Wow, the God-given role of watching and caring for these little lives is huge.

Maybe you’ve never even imaged the devastation that can occur from car seat neglect. If you give it a moments thought, I’m sure like many of us, the horror is paralysing. Awareness, awareness, awareness. Let’s raise awareness. I pray that everyone reading this will never experience the kind of unimaginable pain car seat neglect can bring.

Thanks to Mandy and her Team, there is page after page of inspiring reading around this topic. Browse it here and help save a life. And heartache, regret and brokenness.

Let’s be better, and do better.

xxx

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