The Crime Scene

On Monday night I finally got caught up with one of my favorite shows, Desperate Housewives. Yeah I know it's a raunchy show, but I find the touching storylines and ruthless humor irresistible. The backstabbing and conniving are by far the most creative too. The latest episode talked about being victims of crime as Lynette's pizza pub got robbed. As I watched, I wondered how it would feel getting robbed. Well I experienced the feeling the very next day.

My mom's house in Oakland got broken into on Tuesday. My niece Sarah lives there and they came in through an open window while she was at work. And of course they came through a window which I had removed the burglar bars! Ahh, I've never hear the end of it!

I drove my mom to the crime scene after dinner. Upon entering, it was like a movie, every room ransacked and upended. They were very thorough going through every drawer, cabinet and closet. As I helped my mom clean up, we realized that none of her stuff was missing! They went through her jewelry but I guess they're not really into jade or 14k chains. They opened up some red envelopes--ones with quarters in them, but totally missed the ones with $5 and $10 bills. Loser.

Sarah was missing $60 cash and all her jewelry, mostly costume jewelry but she did lose a pair of diamond earrings. Although according to her, "I didn't buy them." So perhaps she's not too upset over them (maybe they came from an ex-boyfriend). They did not take her 20" LCD monitor or computer which had all her personal info, so she's real fortunate. I think the thief was frustrated, picking the poorest house in the neighborhood. Other than the earrings, he was out of luck. Sorry buddy, no iPods, digital cameras, PS3, or laptops for you!

Even though things could've been a lot worst, it's still an absolute horrible feeling knowing a stranger went through your stuff. Some of you may have experienced having your car broken into, well this is like ten times worst. Sure we don't have to deal with insurance, deductible and repairs, but the anger, fear, and uneasiness will continue to haunt us for a while (especially my mom, who'll spend this weekend there). Hopefully the thief will tell his buddies our house is a dud and is a waste of time. Robbing our house is like going to a buffet where all the food is stale.

Times like these I like to remember that the Lord is always watching over us. He gives us trials to test our faith and to build us up. It also reminds me not to get attached to material wealth. They can get stolen, vandalized or heck, the thief could've even burned down the house! It's amazing how fast something can be gone. For us to get through this relatively unscathed, is a true testament to the merciful God we trust in. If you think about it, there are way too many scenarios that could've happened, like what if the thief confronted Sarah? So we're just extremely thankful at this point that no one was hurt and no damage was done. Things can be replaced, lives cannot.

Well this surely was a wake up call to all of us. Lock your windows and survey your surroundings. Protect your family and don't be a victim. Man, I'm really gonna hate putting back up those burglar bars!