A Grandfather's Lapse

The Caribbean Is One Nation.

                                                                         A  Grandfather's Lapse

The news that the grandfather in Trinidad and Tobago, who recently forgot his seventeen months old grandson in the backseat of his car that led to the death of the toddler will face criminal charges, is a story that cannot have a happy ending. From all reports, the grandfather was an integral and loving part of the youngster’s life. It is therefore some consolation that for his brief stay on earth, the little boy experienced much love and attention. It is therefore not surprising, that he was the centre of his family.

The Mahogany Coconut Group has been in the forefront of highlighting crimes against our children, women and the elderly. In the strict legal sense, this unfortunate incident, is a crime against a child and will be recorded as criminal negligence toward a child. It is not that the grandfather is a bad man or deliberately set out to harm the love of his life; it is just that we all suffer bouts of forgetfulness. Unfortunately the grandfather’s lapse led to the premature expiration of his loving grandson whom he adored.

As we begin to welcome summer, we can expect incidents such as the one mentioned above to occur. These will happen both in our region and the Diaspora. We therefore urge all parents and guardians to be forever watchful and vigilant in the care of our precious jewels. We are losing many of our young people to senseless speeding and the accidents, which result from the sometimes dangerous bravery of our teenagers. Often attempting to display new driving skills for their peers, they end up making inexperienced decisions and misjudging roadways and highways, leading either to death or long term and sometimes permanent injury. Technology often plays a part because they are texting and talking on their cell phones while driving, not realizing that a split second separates them from sudden death and life.

We can only hope that as the case against the grandfather continues, it will be established that all we have mentioned about his loving and close connection to his now departed grandson, will at least be taken into consideration because when all is said and done, it was an unfortunate lapse act on his part. The pain he feels and will perhaps feel for the remainder of his life cannot be underestimated. We certainly wish the family well and hope that we all try our best to avoid such unfortunate lapses.