Alone, on A Stranger's Wood Floor.

It's Friday, Halloween Night, and it's right in the middle of trick or treating. A little after seven, when I hear Emma holler "call 911".

I see Emma out in her front lawn directing a young mother inside. Mom is wearing khaki jeans and a white t-shirt, she is holding a small girl limp in her arms. The girl is wearing a white, yellow and blue Snow White dress, and there are two young boys, about three and four years old, next to her dressed in cape-costumes, maybe Dracula and Batman. Emma is telling her to get inside and the woman is screaming. Screaming, "MY GOD!! MY Baby!! MY BABY GIRL!!" in-between a godawful low-throat rumble of pure terror. It's freaking us out and we don't know what is wrong with the baby. She sets little Snow White on the wood floor near the front door and I can see her. I think we can save her. Is she choking? Her head rolls to one side and her little eyes are darting to the right to the right to the right. The mother screams again. Emma has to ask the boys if they gave the little girl any candy. Batman and Dracula shake their heads no. Snow White's little cheeks are so red they are turning inside out. She isn't choking. She is blinking and breathing. Emma looks in her mouth. Her little teeth are grinding. The mother rips off the little girl's diaper, stands up and wails "She is NOT responding!! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!! MY ONLY GIRL!!!" The diaper falls on the wood floor. Little Snow White is on the ground with no bottoms and her white, yellow, and blue skirt up near her waist. Now there is a lot of drool coming out of her mouth, bubbles first, then a long stream. The mother is tearing at her chest and running around the house and then the front yard. I'm standing up, Emma and Dave are outside waiting for the ambulance, I'm looking down and lil Dracula is holding his sisters hand crying. Dave is telling the mother that she has to pull it together for her kids. Emma is saying "she is having a seizure, she is going to be ok." The ambulance is not around. The mother screams and screams and screams and screams and screams. MY baby oh my god my baby my baby my baby. Don't let her die dear god my baby I have heart trouble. I kneel next to snow white and I ask dracula his name. It is R***. I touch Snow White's head and it feels like the side of a fresh cup of coffee, no the side of an exhaust pipe. Her hair is dark and in a tiny pony tail, sprayed with a bit of sparkle hair spray. R*** is  crying hard now. Snow White is barely moving, just her eyes, just a little bit, to the right right right right. I tell R**** it's fine and we need to hold her hand. Snow White is tiny and beautiful and very busy having a seizure that is taking forever. Mom is flailing around. Snow Whites eyes go further back. Mom stands over her and screams screams her name! Mom, you have to calm down Dave says. She puts the sign of the cross with her thumb on Snow White's forehead, on her belly, and her fiery cheeks, she says something about satan leaving and please god and she won't listen to anything we say. She has heart trouble. She lost a baby when he was nine months old. She dropped Snow White when she was a baby... Snow White's eyes keep going further right right right. Her hand is up a little now, in a fist near her face. R*** has the other hand and I am holding her hot hairsprayed head. The neighbor comes over she has all gray hair. She knows what to do, she is a grandma and she has EMS on the cordless phone. She leans over me and R*** and Snow White and says, "roll her over on her side when she is done."

Are you done Snow White? It looks incredibly tiring and your head is so hot. Emma is helping with Batman. Dracula has left to check on his candy bag because he forgot that Dracula doesn't get afraid. Mom, is flopping around on the floor, in the lawn, on the phone, and she is screaming screaming screaming.

Snow White moans, she is done but she doesn't answer her mother's wails, we put her on her side. Her little fist smashes into her hot red cheek. The cordless phone tells us to get a blanket. I put it on her. EMS shows up and tells us to take the blanket off for godsakes - don't listen to the cordless phone.

The ambulance leaves after twenty minutes of scaring away the other trick or treaters. We try to tell them, it's ok, the candy here is fine. Red lights flash in our faces. The bottoms of my hands are still hot from her head. I hope Snow White is ok. They will be back for their stroller. It's on Emma's porch.