A Broken Door

It has taken me almost a month and a half to sort out and reassemble into thoughts a frightening intrusion that happened to Jason and me...here are the details:

I came home on Monday during the early evening to find a police officer and our neighbor Chris standing in our driveway. As if that wasn't alarming enough, the double front doors of the house were standing wide open. The police officer reported that someone had kicked in the front doors and taken several items from the office and our bedroom. I ran through each room, seeing drawers pulled open and papers thrown everywhere. Ziggy was hiding under the bed, eyes as wide as saucers. In my blind panic, I realized that Bandit had escaped.

Chris quickly informed me that our neighbors next door (bless them) had noticed a dog running around the neighborhood for about an hour before he planted himself in their front yard. They realized that the husky was ours and put him safely in their backyard. My theory is that Bandit had a blissful taste of freedom before becoming completely confused about where his new house was ... he tired out, ended up in the proximity and waited for further direction!

An inventory of the items missing reveled that the theives had taken our flat screen computer monitor, my MP3 player, a laptop, and unfortunately much of my jewelry. Most of the jewelry pieces were costume, with the exception of a necklace Jason had given me as a gift. Although they got into our small safe, no personal documents were taken. I do keep reasoning that it could have been much worse, which is certainly true.

Our beloved pets are safe and so are we. That's what counts. We have reassessed our personal safety measures within the house, and activated an alarm system. I slept with a baseball bat next to the bed for several weeks. The doors are fixed and reinforced. For the moment, that's all we can do to assure it won't happen again. The feeling of of being unsafe in the place that is supposed to provide solice and comfort - our home - is slowly easing over time.

For the friends and family who knew about it, thanks for your prayers and encouraging words. As I've talked to people about it, I've come to realize that this type of event is exceedingly common. It is difficult to understand why someone would believe breaking into a home is an acceptable behavior, but that's the way it is, simply put. It's not our place to feel bitter or angry over the long-term as a result of the crime, but to forgive and move on.

Love to all,
M.