Near-abduction story: One summer when I was eight, my dad let me do the 15 min walk from the Canadian Tire to the video store by myself while he shopped. In this magical time before cell phones, we agreed I would arrive at the video store, pick out a video (ah, the 90s) and wait for him there. Feeling pretty grown up, I headed out down along the main street of our little town. It was summer and tourist season, so main street was busier than usual. I was about halfway there when at one point (I don't exactly recall how), I became aware that a man had been behind me the entire time. The street and sidewalk was fairly busy, there was really no reason to think so, but I remember very clearly my admittedly sensitive, eight-year-old self 'knowing' something was off about this guy. The same way you 'know' that someone is in a good mood or a bad mood; it was a feeling that manifested into an awareness that, as a kid, I could neither really acknowledge or ignore. I'll always remember the way he looked - probably because I had to describe him to police later, so it solidified in my mind: very large, very tall. Very front-heavy, a red beard with bits of grey in it. In blue overalls, walked with a limp. Urged my instinct, I began walking close to a family with children - something I had either been told to do or had seen on TV at one point - but they eventually veered away and he was still behind me. I slowed down, dawdling, and positioned it so he walked in front of me for awhile, but somehow he fell behind me again. We never looked right at each other, but again - this was something I knew was happening. At one point I remember growing anxious and stepped into a used bookstore, looking for an adult. The man followed me in, and stood a few shelves away while I sidled up to the old lady at the counter. I saw him slip out of the store, and told her I thought a man was following me, and could I wait for my dad to pass by. In a way that was not unfriendly, she told me no, I would need to move on, that she couldn't let me just hang around. I became very anxious, and was afraid to go back outside, because now I didn't know where he was. But raised to listen and obey adults, I left the store and immediately stepped into the one next door. A middle-aged man behind the counter was speaking and joking with a woman when I approached, shyly asked to use his phone, and promptly burst into tears. Phone calls were made; to Canadian Tire (where it was determined my dad had already left) to the video store, and it was decided that the woman would walk me the rest of the way (which was only a block or so more). I held her hand, looking over my shoulder the entire time, then sat in the video store with her watching Spice World until my dad showed up. Then I cried some more. We filed a police report, and were informed some weeks later that a man matching the same description I had given had been arrested on charges of trying to lure a nine-year-old girl into his car in a nearby township. I wasn't abducted, but to this day, I remember parts of the experience incredibly clearly. I truly believe I only managed to stay safe was because of the awareness created by my parents and school. Some people I know don't like to talk to kids about strangers, or listening to their guts, because they don't want to scare them, or make them afraid of the world. I grew up to be an independent and confident woman - all because I was told what to do and what not to do when I felt like something was 'wrong.'