“He’s missing!”, my spouse bellows in the middle of the most serene place on the ship. Okay, the spa is the most serene location, but the adult pool area is pretty quiet, so his screaming jarred me. The “he” is Bailey and oddly enough, I just had a conversation with Brian on the way to the pool about this very subject.
Let me back up to the beginning. Our cabin was on deck 8. The pool and most importantly for Bailey and Brian, the buffet breakfast was on deck 11. We commonly took the stairs since the location was so close, but on this particular day, Bailey wanted to ride the elevator. Before I could utter my concerns, Brian assured me that Bailey knew what to do, so he got on the elevator and we took the stairs. Apparently, Brian was wrong about Bailey. The bellowing was proof of that.
As I jump up and disturbed all of the delightful quiet in the area, I went to the elevator in case he got off and Brian was going to go back down to our room in case he went back there. I, in the meantime, am not concerned. Here is the reality. He had on his lanyard with his ID card showing which room he was in, plus while the ship is large, we would eventually find him especially if food was a lure. Plus, for the love of God, he was more popular than the Disney characters. Everyone seemed to know him.
We are working so diligently to give Bailey some independence. It’s hard, but more so in a large public venue. At least the ship was a contained environment, so my panic was not in overdrive, but simmering. Right when I positioned myself in front of the elevator doors, they opened and out he walked. He seemed a little frazzled. “I forgot to push the button.” So my sweet son with Down syndrome was riding up and down on the elevator. I calmly reviewed which floor to push when coming from our stateroom which he may or may not have heard because his focus was on the buffet.
After Bailey was out of earshot, I gave Brian the stink eye and really wanted to blast him for his dismissing of my concerns. I reminded him that Bailey forgets instructions, so it is imperative to go over those particulars before he leaves the premises. Not sure if he heard me because he too is lured by food. I might as well continue the conversations with myself as they end on a better note.
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