Her job made it necessary for her to go overseas for the summer and it was impossible for her to bring Kevin with her. The cleaning lady was only part time and wasn’t really suited to look after Kevin which is why she came to my agency.
I said I understood how difficult the situation could be for her and told her that I was fully equipped to take care of her little boy. I said I would make sure that he had stimulation everyday and plenty of rest. Trips to the zoo and the aquarium and that I had been trained in preparing nutritious but delicious food for children. She smiled at me a little strangely and said, “Well, that’s great.” But, I said, before we go any further, I’d like to meet him. I had packed a really cute little stuffed puppy that I thought might help me win him over.
She said, that Kevin wasn’t feeling well because of a really bad summer cold and allergies. The medicine the doctor had prescribed really knocked him out so he was having a little nap. I said that’s ok we don’t need to wake him then, could we just go up to have a look? Again, the strange smile when she said OK.
She led me upstairs to Kevin’s room. She opened the door a little and peaked in to make sure he was asleep. She walked into the room and I heard some talking. Mrs. O’Neil came out and said, it’s OK, he’s awake and would like to meet you. I put on my biggest smile and walked in to see little Kevin.
I stopped dead in my tracks. Instead of a toddler lying in a crib, I saw a boy sitting up in bed with an ipad on his lap and headphones clamped on his neck. I said, “Where’s Kevin.”
“Right here,” Mrs. O’Neil said.
“I thought he was 15 months old.”
She laughed, “No, he’s fifteen years old, but that explains why you were talking about him the way you were.”