An Entire Box of Cookies

/ Jessica

Have you ever been cruising through your day, then suddenly a road block appears and brings things to a screeching halt? 

Like one of those moments where your gut is screaming your name and shouting: 

“Hey you, pay attention! Something’s not right! Something is off! Warning. Warning.”

That happened to me yesterday.

It started as an ordinary day. We had a morning appointment in a nearby town, then we went to a library there. 

The library is not in the greatest area, but we’ve been there before and haven’t ever had any trouble.

Until yesterday. 

Yesterday was different. There was a man, a patron. He was staring a bit too long, trying to stand too close, and he seemed to be waiting… 

I’m not sure what his intentions were, but something was wayyyyyy off.  My gut was on high alert. 

I got some distance between us by going into the children’s area. It’s set up so that once you’re in there, you can’t really see into the main library. 

I was scared. 

You see, when we arrived, I parked back behind the building. It’s usually a great place to park because its seldom crowded and there’s always spaces available. It’s about a half block down and around the corner.

Around the corner and in the back is ok on most days, but the idea of desolate was really not fitting into our situation. I found myself trying to figure out how we were going to get to our truck safely. 

I texted my husband and told him about what was going on. He offered to drive 30 miles to walk us to our truck. (So sweet.)

I told him I’d look around and see if he was gone and if I still didn’t feel comfortable, I’d ask the staff to walk us out. 

About 40 minutes later, we went to the counter to check out our books. I didn’t see him anywhere! I was sooooo relieved. 

That quickly changed when I saw him look right at me, step back in the front door, mill around a few minutes, then step back outside. 

He was waiting for us to leave. 

How did I know that? I have no idea, I just knew. 

First, I panicked. 

Then, I assessed things. 

Then, 2 angels appeared. 

Security guards. They stood between us and the front door. 

I approached them, told them my concerns, pointed him out, and asked if they’d walk us to the truck. 

They agreed. 

We went outside and they were several feet from us. We got past him and down the sidewalk a bit. I didn’t see him behind us and I thought maybe we were in the clear.  

Home-free. 

Until we got around the corner. When I glanced back, I saw him coming right behind us. It wasn’t a casual pace either. He WAS following us. 

Ugh.

Omg! Seriously? Who does that? 

Who follows a mom and her child around a library, waits around 40 minutes, then follows them to their vehicle? 

Thankfully, the security guards were still a few feet away. Thankfully, I got my kiddo into the truck. 

As I came back around to my side to get in, he was standing right by my tailgate and he was talking to the security guards. 

I actually had to step between his back and my bumper to get to my door. 

Then, he left and walked the opposite way, across the parking lot. 

We made it out of there safely. We are so lucky. 

After we got home, I finally stopped shaking, texted a friend, called my parents, and ate an entire box of cookies. 

77 thoughts on “An Entire Box of Cookies”

  1. That is so scary. Thank you for sharing. It is so important to be observant of your surroundings, there terrible people in this world. Glad you and your family made it home safe.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • You will not believe this! We went to a different library branch today in the same town. When we were checking out our books, the SAME scary guy walked by. He looked at me and quickly disappeared. I have no idea where he went. Yikes.

      I got the staff to walk us out to our truck. I thought that experience was all done and over, and there he was again in a different place… I think we may start a new hobby for awhile. 😊

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      • Oh my goodness, what in the world?! That is so scary! You should contact your local library system and report these incidents. I’m sure he has made other people uncomfortable as well. Way to be observant! I don’t blame you for wanting to take a break from the library..YIKES!

        Liked by 1 person

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        • I know! I couldn’t believe it! I mean, I was never going to go to that first one ever again because he knows what I drive!! So, I really was surprised to see him somewhere else! Yikes is right!

          I have contacted the library. I guess the keep a log. The first incident was documented by the security guards, plus I spoke to someone in a different branch who sent email documentation, too. Yesterday I asked staff to walk us out which I believe is noted as well.

          Pretty darn creepy to see that same guy AGAIN. Protection mode completely kicked in! Maybe a self defense class is a good idea…

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          • So creepy! Those type of situations leave a horrible feeling in your gut. I think you handled it great and did the right thing by not ignoring it! It sounds like the library is aware, which is good! Gotta protect your kiddos 😊

            Liked by 1 person

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            • Thank you. 😊😊 Momma bear kicks into high gear when “cubs ” are at risk. Love that instinct. Hopefully, we never have any more experiences like that. I’ve had my fill. Ha. Thanks for commenting. I do appreciate your insight and your time! (Love your blog, by the way!)

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  2. Oh Jess, how frightening. Good thing your senses were on high alert and you listened to your gut instinct. And I’m so glad you’re okay. 🍰😒 Far out, no wonder you ate all those cookies. I would have too. 🙂 Big hugs to you and take care xo

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi. Yes, it was definitely a wake up call. Who knew that being in a place we’d been many times, would turn out like that?

      We’ve lived near that town for 15 years and it’s definitely changing. That area seems to be getting pretty rough. I won’t go back to that area. Ever.

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  7. That must have been terrifying. I’m glad you managed to get out of the place safely in the end. You mentioned the man was talking to the security guards. I wonder if they managed to find out anything about what was motivating the guys scary behavior.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • It was awful. I found out today from some friends that they’ve had some scary incidents there as well. One friend even had an issue in the same parking lot (different day). I also found out that moms are targeted because they know we’ll give up our purse or whatever we have to keep our kids safe. And, also because we won’t chase them because we won’t leave our kids.

      Before today, I had NO idea that people would do such a thing. It makes total sense though. I saw him looking at my boy first, then he was staring at me. Then he kept getting in our space. We homeschool, so we were about the only mom/ kid in there at early afternoon time… Yikes.

      To answer you question, I found out yesterday that the guy is at the library a lot and “seems harmless”. When I questioned “harmless” I was told to still keep an eye out.

      I’m guessing harmless in a library looks a lot different than harmless in a deserted parking lot…

      Liked by 1 person

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  8. How scary was that?! I’m so glad you guys are OK. It’s great that you too have this instinct about people and that you were trying to avoid him and that you were looking for a safe way out. I have this instinct too. A few friends of mine think I’m nuts because I’m always prepared for the worst, but I know my instinct keeps me safe. And I’d rather worry about something that might happen, and I’d rather think up 20 scenarios and how I can get away, than wake up in a hospital because I ignored obvious warning signs… Signssss. Plural.

    I’m so glad the security guys walked you to your truck. If this had happened to me I would have been driving with shaky hands and I know I could have heard my own heart beat for hours. And I couldn’t have hidden my fear from my child. I’m so relieved you’re OK! xoxoxo

    Oh, one more thing. If you ever feel that someone is following you while you’re driving, keep your calm, drive a funny route that doesn’t make sense, and if you’re still being followed, don’t drive home, but drive to the nearest police station and park right in front of the police building. Then wait and see what the other driver does. And only drive home when you know it’s safe! xoxoxo

    Again, I’m so glad you’re safe!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Signsssssss is right. They were loud and clear. I’m glad to hear you listen to your gut. It’s SO important. I’m 110% sure mine saved us. Trust me, I was shaking all the way home.

      Thanks for the tip about if someone’s following in a car. A police station is an excellent idea.

      But, we made it thanks to some quick thinking, 2 kind souls, and a billion guardian angels!! I will be forever grateful. Love and big hugs to you, my friend!! ❤️😊

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  10. I think something may have got lost in the translation, I don’t quite understand when you first saw him, what do you mean he was a patron, a patron of what, the library? What made you feel nervous about him and that you were in danger in a library?

    Liked by 1 person

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    • A big lesson for us all for sure. On my blog’s Facebook page, there are comments from some locals who have had issues in the same area. I’m so glad I decided to write this. Gives everyone a voice. Thank you for reading! 💜

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi. Thank you for reading. I appreciate your kind words. It’s not typically a story I’d share on here, but thought it was something that maybe needed to be shared. It seems easy to ignore gut feelings sometimes. But, sometimes it’s really critical not to.

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