[Lupin]

Just sharing an experience :)

Yesterday an awful thing happened. We're quite lucky to be alive really.

We were driving along a country road with a steep side to it and suddenly there was an almighty BANG and glass everywhere. My husband was driving and I was in the passenger seat with the kids in the back. I was completely freaked and demanded he carry on driving. Visions of nutty farmers with guns were playing through my mind. The windscreen had *just* held but we were all covered (me especially) in tiny shards of glass. Then my 9 yr old says she saw some kids up the hill throwing stones and we quickly turn around and head up the steep drive to the house she thinks it is and where we can see children peeping over the edge. However it can't be them; the kids are too young to have thrown so far and they are clearly not to blame. Their mother tried to help us clear it up but she also mentioned the big kids visiting next door so we're keen to sort the situation immediately. My adrenalin is racing and we head back to the road and along to the next drive. Smaller stones hit us as we drive past and now I'm *furious*. Up the next drive and we leap out the car and storm the back garden to find three boys from our village, two from our school!

I'm horrified they'd do something so stupid and I'm extremely angry. They're visiting the woman who owns this house so now they've got me crying and shouting, my husband furious and demanding they come and see what they've done and one parent plus the homeowner mortified and simultaneously hugging a now very upset me and shouting at the boys. We leave with promises that they'll pay for the damage etc.

Back home we clean up the car, all change and head down to play on our new (to us, it's about 30 yrs old, lol!) mower on our section. My husband and I note the irony that we move to a small rural backwater and experience crime when we were untouched by it in our UK hometown.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2394/1686810544_1d4bb74204_m.jpg

On the way home I meet one of the boy's mums (she wasn't there earlier- I know here reasonably well and knew she'd be devastated) who hops out her car, crying and very apologetic with a seriously meek and tearful boy clutching letters from all three boys and chocolates. Mum gives us a bottle of wine and says the boys need to come and work on our section as a consequence and that they'll pay. She asks again and again if there is anything they can do.

The letters are sincere, genuine and remorseful. They were throwing stones at an electricity pole across the road, which they realise was incredibly stupid and could have resulted in a fatality.

Next weekend they are due to dig us a deep hole for our pohutukawa and dig out thistles for us. We've got a lot of thistles.

[pinkpiggy]

Wow! What a lucky escape you had. I'm so pleased you're all okay, if a little shook up with your ordeal. At least you got an apology and some little helpers. Not so sure you would not have had the same result in the UK.

I had a similar experience to this in the UK but with a much older gang of youths. They came out into the first lane of a 3 lane ring road and I had to swerve to avoid them, swerve again when they threw, what I then found to be eggs, at the windscreen and then again to avoid the car in the next lane. Very irresponsible and very dangerous. I actually called the police as this was an extremely busy stretch of road. The police said they'd been getting calls about this for 30 mins - obviously they took a great deal of notice. :no

[Moorf]

Good grief - that's awful - glad you're all okay. :yes

Nice to see the parents making their kids responsible and paying their dues.

[jubjub]

That was a very lucky escape, hope you have calmed down now, the car can be fixed.

I was pleased to see that the parents have taken responsibility, disciplined the children and made them apologise for what they did, and make amends to you by doing work. All too often you here "oh little johnny didnt mean it" and thats the end of it.

Hope you have a thistle free section at the weekend.

[Sam B]

I know it's a really awful thing, but I actually found the whole story quite heartwarming - really great that the parents and boys are prepared to put things right, and a relief that they weren't actually aiming for you. I hope you're ok, it must have been such a shock.

[gil]

Ohm Lupin, just to echo what everyone else has said and glad that you're all alright!

Gil
xx

[marcia]

OMG - I'd have reacted just the same as you! Hope you had a couple of large Brandies to get over the shock!:cheers

I also think its fantastic really that the parents are making the children accountable and hopefully the kids will think a bit more next time1 And you never know you could find yourselves having some wonderful friendships out of what could have been a disaster!

[willsken]

Lupin I'm so glad you're all OK. It must have been very frightening for you. Kids do stupid things and I'm glad to hear the parents have taken responsibility and made the children make amends for what they did. :yes

I echo what Paula said about the response you get in the UK. (not all the time I'm sure, just our experience) There were a couple of teenage boys going along all the cars in our street and kicking off the wing mirrors. Ian caught one of them and took him home. Basically he was to to p*** off by the parents as they said there was no way their son would have done something like that! We watched him do it but our word wasn't good enough as they didn't want to pay for the damage. :roll

[Helsandfamily]

I am so glad that you are ok, it must have been terrifiying.

Hels

[leachio]

Bless u Lupin I hope u are all ok now. Ive had the same problems as willsken in UK where my wing mirrors were kicked or smashed off at least 12 times, we unfortunatley get some sort of trouble because dan's a copper. Now we are hopin to re-home in a safer area, money permittin.

I hope ur thistles disappear and the wee devils sweat a lot!!!

[willsken]

Ive had the same problems as willsken in UK where my wing mirrors were kicked or smashed off at least 12 times, !

:eek: Poor you! I was put out for weeks at it happening the once! We did have an instance of a group of youths smashing at car doors with a baseball bat. I heard them and chased them up the road before they got to my baby! Got a right telling off from OH for chasing them though! :uhoh :uhoh

[veronica]

That must have been a really distressing session for you but lucky the other adults there were responsible.
sorry to be so cynical but I really do doubt that the kids were aiming at the telegraph pole. kids have a way of lying to get out of things and having worked with lots of kids in the past I find it hard to believe. But I do believe that they don't appreciate the full consequences of their actions, after all when it happens on TV everybody is ok. But these kids have a chance as the parents involved are making the kids see and give restitution for their actions which are in fact criminal actions. hope it all settles down now.

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

Reminds me of a time in the UK when driving down a main road (I was in the back of the car) and a drunk wandered out immediately in front of the car from between parked cars.

There was no way the driver could have seen him or stopped so, obviously, we hit him full on. He came through the windscreen.

I nearly filled my pants, so I can understand exactly the emotions you felt at the time.

Incidently, the drunk got himself up and all he cared about was whether we'd run over his sandwiches !!!!

The driver was mortified at having run someone over and didn't drive or get in a car again for several days.

Another time, whilst taking a walk along the canal with my girlfriend of the time (it was a while ago) a group of young lads passed us. A few seconds later I heard their running feet coming back towards us.

I turned just in time to find them pushing me towards the canal. I managed to take two of them in with me, which I'm quite pleased about.

I stunk to high heaven upon clambering out.

Lord only knows what would have happened if they'd picked on an old or inform person.

They ran off laughing heartily of course.

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

Be warned about reacting too strongly.

I worked with a guy who was (understandably) totally hacked off after several 'knock and run' events on many many consecutive nights.

On the last occasion he chased the kids (they were quite young) down the road to the park brandishing a screw driver and threatening to 'shove it where the sun don't shine'

The kids told their parents, and later that evening he got arrested and ended up being sentenced to community service.

Clearly his reaction was way over the top, but it's easy to understand how he got provoked into it, so taking a deep breath and gathering your thoughts is always a good plan before reacting too quickly. Easier said than done though.

On the plus side, the kids never came back !

[Familyofmonkeys]

Nice to see the parents making their kids responsible and paying their dues.

Was just thinking same thing. Hope you are all feeling OK :)

[vixxann]

just echoing everyone elses messages and glad it was not too serious - although obviously a terrible shock

The remorse and apology side of it actually made me feel quite good though. I'm so glad the parents didn't just take the side of their kids (like I think many in UK would) and its nice to see a fitting "punishment" being agreed to.

Lets hope these are deep down sensible lads that have been shocked by the consequences of their actions and this will prevent them doing anything daft again.

[Lara Croft]

Scary stuff, but it had a good ending, and is unlikely to happen again thank goodness! What a different attitude to the UK.

I worked in Salford for 4 years, and although you felt in moderate danger every day, it was worst in the weeks approaching bonfire night when the lovely little kids would throw fireworks at your car as you drove by. Hubby nearly fell foul of a carjacker on the same road - someone swerves out in front of you and blocks off the road, if you are daft enough to get out of the car, someone behind you leaps in and steals it. Common practice. The other trick that happened almost daily (we watched from our 2nd floor office) was the local kids walking in the road when the traffic had stopped for a red light, and grabbing open car doors & boots, and taking whatever they could, before sprinting off into the underpass. Happy days.... NOT!!!

Jane

[snailandthewhale]

Used to work in Salford, Oh, how I miss it.............
K

[katandbob]

glad your ok, but I am very pleased to read the reaction of their parents, and I hope that you make them take out every thistle.....dug out of course!

but if you re-read your post when your over the fright - you will see like the rest that there would be no way you'd have got that same outcome in the UK (or even a NZ city maybe?) so I suppose its 1 for rural - at least they are still in control of their kids - even if it is reactive rather than proactive.

I hope they also make them examples at their schools - so to warn other kids what concequences a silly action can have. Then maybe the others will think twice at throwing things

Kat

[Myrkk]

Ditto the others.........glad you are all ok.

and I'm afraid I too thought "that wouldn't happen in the UK" at the reaction from the parents and the kids. :no

[dilanium]

so glad that you're okay.

[incredible hulse]

Glad to hear all OK and the parents are taking responsibility for it.

Sad to say it seems to confirm that there are little scrotes everywhere - the in thing around this neck of the woods at the moment is to smash letter boxes, wing mirrors, etc; Guess they're emulating their All Blacks

[M&J]

Good to hear you are all ok. I think as others have said at least the parents took responsibility.

I think it would be a much different story in the Uk. We have left a village near Coventry where there was a big problem with kids vandalising and threatening residence, kids as young a 10!! I felt very threatened by them and would never walk down the village on my own after dark. The police knew who they were, but as the parents didn't care it was very difficult to do anything.

I must say I feel much safer here.

Make the most of you helpers at the weekend.

[Smiler]

Lupin, I hope you and your family are feeling better today and the shock is wearing off.

As other's have said it is nice to see the parents making the child take responsiblity. This happens so infrequently in the 'so what sue me' culture of today. I hope the kids really do learn from the experience. The fact that they are being punished and that they will have an ongoing reminder seeing you and your family around, will help. :nice1

[flatshoes]

sorry to hear that, and glad it worked out in the end.
The rural crime I have heard of is mainly associated with the organized crime connections (Mongrel Mob etc.) of the local dope growers. There were a bunch of squatters of that ilk that some naive rainbowy lady allowed to housesit for her and they trashed the house and half-terrorized the locals for awhile until something more pressing drew them to another area.

[ourquest]

I read your original post with some relief after seeing the title for the thread. One of the drawcards for us in NZ (we make the move next year) is low crime...putting it in perspective we live in South Africa, a beautiful country with much going for it, but personal safety is not one of them. More and more here (SA) it is not the unthought-out consequence of truent action that causes injury or otherwise for victims (as you might have experienced; very glad you didn't), but wilful serious violence in the name of greed and desperation. People get shot here for very little reason...and this breeds a nation of people protecting themselves in anticipation. Us pacifists are a bit fed up I suppose, we don't condone any form of violence anywhere, but I do think your entire experience is actually a positive one, as noted by many replies to the post.