Tonight, my nine-year-old great-granddaughter, Tycari, ran away. 

Having moved recently from Florida, they stayed with me until a few weeks ago. My granddaughter found a lovely home in a suburb close to their school. It’s been difficult for the girls to be uprooted from their home in Florida and all their friends, but we thought the adjustment was going well. We thought wrong.

At 8:30, I got a call from Carissa telling me she couldn’t find Tycari. The young girl had lost her ‘tablet time” because she was rude at her sister’s soccer game. When they got home, she wanted her tablet, and her mom said no. A few minutes later, while Carissa was cleaning out the car, Tycari announced she was running away. Like most parents, Carissa didn’t believe her, so she answered, “Fine. Goodbye.” and continued to clean the car.

Thirty minutes later, she told the girls to get ready for bed. She didn’t see Tycari, so she asked Keyanna and Camryn where their sister was. They both answered, “She said she was running away.” Of course, Carissa couldn’t believe that they were both being so casual. 

She asked them why they didn’t tell her. Five-year-old Camryn said, “Because she left you a note.” 

The note said, “I am running away because you said it was okay. I’m leaving all my things. Goodbye.”

Needless to say, we searched the house, yard, neighborhood, and roads. Three cars drove in every direction (but the right one). With no luck and it being dark, we called the police. The Sheriff’s Department sent cars, and the search was on.  It was now 10:15.

Fifteen minutes later, and with many prayers from me, the Sheriff returned to the house and said they had found her about three miles down the dark country road. Three miles! I think an angel must have been walking with her.

A neighbor, who Carissa had never met, was out driving around because her newborn baby wouldn’t go to sleep and was crying. She recognized Tycari as the little girl who had just moved into the house two doors down. She picked her up and went to the closest gas station, called the police, and waited. (Ten thousand thank yous and blessings to her)

I can’t answer the whys and what-ifs, but I certainly can thank the Lord and the neighbor for being in the right place at the right time when we needed them. The Sheriff’s Department brought her home and had a long talk with her. Last night, her answer for running away went from “Mommy said I could” to “I don‘t know.” Today, I hope she has a better one.

Afterward, I hugged her, and she told me she was sorry she scared me. I asked if she was scared, but she said no. This girl is afraid of the dark in her bedroom, but not on a lonely, dark country road. Go figure! She’d turned the wrong direction and was going away from my house instead of toward it.

This story could have had a very different ending. I am thankful that in order to calm my nerves, I am sitting sharing with my FS friends a happy ending. Tomorrow, when I pick her up after school, we will have a long talk. Tonight, I need to thank the Lord for blessing us once again.