The Drive In Movie Threat

When Nina comes to visit from Brazil I am always on the lookout for things to show her. I want her to experience every little thing that could be called an "American" experience. She travels to Chile with her family to ski. She jets off to Europe for family vacations. I don't feel pressure to impress her. I've learned that the simple things appeal to her the most.

Through our children's visits to her house in Brazil we have become more educated about how other countries differ in regards to security. Even in a developed country like Brazil, Nina lives in a very guarded environment. Kidnappings are very real in Sao Paulo. Robbery and muggings are commonplace. They have a fence around their house, their neighborhood, their school, even their mall.

The idea of not locking our doors during the day is foreign to Nina. Casually riding our bikes or walking down our street with no fear was something new for her. Her father sat in our driveway and marveled at the sight of our children riding around our neighborhood, freely and unguarded. It is something I didn't realize I should appreciate.

On one of her last days in America I realized we had never taken Nina to the drive in theater. We have several good ones in this area and I quickly googled the weather forecast to see if there would be any dry night that we could go. The days and movie line ups matched up with the weather forecast so I excitedly went to share these new plans with Nina.

"We're going to a drive in!" I said.

"What is this?" she asked.

I explained the basics of the set up, stressing the great concession stands and comfy lawn chair seats.

She looked confused. Very confused. Then she said, "And is this safe?"

Then I looked confused. "Of course it's safe. Why wouldn't it be?"

After a quick minute to collect her thoughts in English, she spelled it out beautifully.

"Well, you sit out in a dark field with a bunch of strangers, in the middle of the night, with your car and all your possessions wide open and exposed."

Well, since you put it that way.....she kind of has a point.

Fortunately they not only had good weather on the night Jeff took them to see a silly movie about guinea pigs, but no one was robbed and/or assaulted. Must have been that rough tough security guard with the pot belly that scared away the criminals.