One evening, just about a month ago, I overheard a conversation between my two teenagers about clowns, scary clowns, all over the country doing awful things.

Honestly, my reaction with my teens was, “Oh come on really? Clowns, like the one’s at the circus or rodeo that make us laugh?”

The reply was more than I expected.

Yes, this is for real! It is happening right here in our community. I had lots of questions. Where are you getting your information? Why am I not hearing about this on the media or from your school and on and on. These conversations continued off and on. One evening, we were driving home at dusk from the school my teens attend. My son pointed out a figure near the school that appeared to be sitting in a chair. Just sitting. Odd, why would someone be sitting by the school and in the dark? I shrugged my shoulders and said, “Oh I am sure it is nothing.” From the passenger seat, a teen went off and said, “Nothing, really nothing? Did you not hear me when I told you about the clowns all over this country and the awful things they are doing?”

Thinking carefully, I thought, OK so it is almost dark, no one else is at this school but one vehicle and something resembling a large man sitting in a chair. It would be acceptable to call the non-emergency phone number and just request a police drive by, especially since we live very near the school.

I asked my son to make the call as I was driving. He did a great job reporting just the facts and no additions that it may be a clown.

Later in the week, I heard yet another tale of the clowns. Apparently, after an athletic event that was an away game, there were parents concerned as they too saw “something” in the parking lot and the adults made sure that every child got safely into their vehicle before driving away. Lesson for this, be aware of one’s surroundings, bad things happen in even the safest of places.

I think the most shocking part of this  for me is that one of my teens said that someone captured a picture of a clown and it has been shared on social media. Once again, we had another conversation about the use of social media and that the better avenue would have been to have reported the incident and supplied the police with the picture and not on Instagram to further the fear factor.

Last night, this sunk in and made me so sad as I realized just how anxious this clown stuff is causing my teens to be! My daughter said that she read an article online that said Halloween is going to be really dangerous. She went on to express that this is awful and needs to stop now! Kids are not even going to be able to enjoy trick or treating with the threat of a clown possibly hurting kids. We had to talk for a while about all of this. We brainstormed why this is happening and what our reactions and responsibilities are with all of this.

Frankly, I am at a loss. I wish I had stepped up earlier, maybe this could have been put to a halt in our neck of the woods. The take home for us all, talk to your kids! Remind them of being safe and tell them your expectations. Find out what is happening on social media. We have had a clown in our community for what my teens have told me since the first part of September, just yesterday, there was an admission from our local college that yes, there has been a sighting. It was followed up with “all of our students are safe.”

While I appreciate this, it also makes this mom a little upset! Not talking about this “clown” stuff that is happening here along with lots of other communities in the United States is in my estimation, not helping this situation! It is a form of terror/bullying and I know in my household, it is causing a lot of unnecessary anxiety and fear. We need to come together in our communities, report anything suspicious and give a clear message that we will not be scared or frightened of this social media created boogie man. It is no longer a joking matter, but one that is spreading like an epidemic.

If you just google and read the headlines, you soon will find that in other areas, clowns are being arrested for crimes and today, there are entire school districts on lock down or closed due to clown sightings. Fear is gripping communities and having impact on teens and young adults around the country. I am in hopes that communities will come up with sound strategies on the most effective way to put these clown incidents behind us before this turns into a more serious situation. In the mean time, talk to your kids, set guidelines as to how you would handle clown sightings and in general, safety that includes a discussion about social media. Clowns should be producers of joy and laughter not fear and anxiety.

So God Made a Mother book by Leslie Means

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A MOTHER available now!

Order Now

Check out our new Keepsake Companion Journal that pairs with our So God Made a Mother book!

Order Now
So God Made a Mother's Story Keepsake Journal

Her View From Home

Millions of mothers connected by love, friendship, family and faith. Join our growing community. 1,000+ writers strong. We pay too!   Find more information on how you can become a writer on Her View From Home at https://herviewfromhome.com/contact-us/write-for-her//

Instead of Counting Down the Days until My Marine Came Home, I Counted My Blessings

In: Motherhood
Mother and two children holding "welcome home" signs next to soldier daddy, color photo

It was a relatively mild morning in October—cool even, considering we were in the middle of the Mojave Desert. We stood atop a concrete amphitheater overlooking a grass field in the middle of the small USMC installation known as Twenty-Nine Palms. All the unit’s seabags were lined up in neat rows, each one stuffed to bursting. John held our daughter Eleanor who had just woken up from a nap in her infant carrier. Blearily, she looked around and then smiled when John paused his conversation with some of his friends to coo at her. I sat with our son Sawyer...

Keep Reading

I Am an Adult with Autism

In: Living, Motherhood
Mother and three children in wildflowers, color photo

Thirty years. That’s how long it took for me to get the right diagnoses. Thirty years. Of struggles. Of shame. Of depression and anxiety. Of bullying. All without knowing the true causes and what was really going on. I never would have believed you if you told me a few years ago that I was autistic. It wasn’t until all three of my children were diagnosed with autism that I started to see the similarities and begin to question. At first, I thought there was no way. Wouldn’t I have known by now? It just can’t be. So I threw...

Keep Reading

I Hope My Daughter Loves Her Future Mother-in-Law

In: Motherhood
Bride holding mother's hands

I’m a proud boy mom. I catch bugs, I catch balls (in the house), and I try my best to catch my boys’ every fall. I love it. I love being a boy mom. There is one part I don’t like: everyone telling me they will leave as soon as they meet “the one,” and their wife’s family will push my husband and I out of the picture. “A boy is yours ‘til he finds a wife, a daughter’s your daughter all her life.” I’d heard it too many times from older moms who chuckle as if the rhyming covers...

Keep Reading

Adoptive Parents-To-Be Deserve to Be Celebrated Too

In: Motherhood
Couple making heart with hands

My husband and I are on a very exciting journey—we are in the process of adopting our first child! Wow, we are stoked beyond words. Albeit we are on the front end of the journey at this point (as in just now about to complete our home study). Yet we are knee-deep and in the thick of it all. After struggling with infertility for about two years and many doctors’ appointments later, it became clear that natural conception is not how we will become parents. We never thought we would encounter infertility. Infertility has been hard and a grieving process...

Keep Reading

I’m Thankful for the Community We’ve Found

In: Friendship, Living, Motherhood
Community on street having a picnic

It was the end of the school holidays, and the return to school after Christmas was looming. The children had had two weeks at home. The general sense of routine was lost for the boys, with late nights and relaxing days watching YouTube while playing their Switch. I was eager for routine to make a reappearance through school. As we headed into the weekend before the start of school, Josh had a cough and then a fever, and it became clear this would not be the week I had envisioned. By Monday morning the boys appeared more lethargic than usual,...

Keep Reading

Our Kids Need Us as Much as We Need Them

In: Kids, Motherhood
Little boy sitting on bench with dog nearby, color photo

During a moment of sadness last week, my lively and joyful toddler voluntarily sat with me on the couch, holding hands and snuggling for a good hour. This brought comfort and happiness to the situation. At that moment, I realized sometimes our kids need us, sometimes we need them, and sometimes we need each other at the same time. Kids need us. From the moment they enter the world, infants express their needs through tiny (or loud) cries. Toddlers need lots of cuddling as their brains try to comprehend black, white, and all the colors of the expanding world around...

Keep Reading

Your Kids Don’t Need More Things, They Need More You

In: Faith, Kids, Motherhood
Mother and young girl smiling together at home

He reached for my hand and then looked up. His sweet smile and lingering gaze flooded my weary heart with much-needed peace. “Thank you for taking me to the library, Mommy! It’s like we’re on a date! I like it when it’s just the two of us.” We entered the library, hand in hand, and headed toward the LEGO table. As I began gathering books nearby, I was surprised to feel my son’s arms around me. He gave me a quick squeeze and a kiss with an “I love you, Mommy” before returning to his LEGO—three separate times. My typically...

Keep Reading

Take it from a Mom Who’s Been There: It Gets Easier

In: Motherhood
Mother with teen daughter embracing and smiling outside

My view from home is changing as my oldest is now married and my youngest is wrapping up his college career. But dear mom of little ones and even those not-so-little ones, I want you to know that I remember. I remember the side-eyes and the judging glances from older moms as I juggled toddlers doing their toddler thing. All these years later, I still feel the harshness of their stings. I remember the gloom and doom declarations of “Just wait until they turn three, or ten, or thirteen . . .” Those almost gleefully delivered little quips that made...

Keep Reading

This is How to Support Miscarriage Moms

In: Grief, Loss, Motherhood
Woman with arm around another woman sitting in field

When you hear the term miscarriage, what do you think? My initial thought was the loss of an unborn child, but have you ever really wondered what truly happens when you are having a miscarriage? Our first miscarriage occurred immediately after our wedding in 2019, we had a chemical pregnancy after conceiving while on our honeymoon. This means we had a positive pregnancy test, but by the time we got to our OB/GYN, I had the heaviest period of my life, resulting in a negative serum pregnancy test. That was hard enough to go through but was nothing compared to...

Keep Reading

Mom, Will You Pray With Me?

In: Faith, Motherhood
Little girl praying, profile shot

“Will you pray with me?” This is a question I hear daily from my 9-year-old. Her worried heart at times grips her, making it difficult for her to fall asleep or nervous to try something new. Her first instinct is to pray with Mom. Perhaps this is because of how many times her Dad and I have told her that God is with her, that she is never alone, and that she can always come to Him in prayer and He will answer. Perhaps it is because she has seen her Dad and I lean on the Lord in times...

Keep Reading