Let’s be honest. Every kid deserves a parent, but not every parent deserves a kid. Some folks are just so clueless when it comes to raising their children that it can leave you wondering how they were allowed to have any in the first place.
One guy recently turned to an online community to share how he’d stumbled across his five-year-old neighbor abandoned in another city. Naturally concerned, he brought the kid home but couldn’t believe her parents’ excuse for why they left her stranded.
More info: Reddit
Every child deserves a parent, but the sad reality is that not all parents deserve a child
Image credits: Jonathan Castañeda / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
One guy was startled when he came across his 5-year-old neighbor alone and stranded in the city where he works
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
The terrified little girl explained to him that her parents had just dumped her and told her to find her own way home as "punishment"
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Bewildered, he made sure the kid got home safely, but couldn’t believe his ears when her parents told him why they’d done it
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After yelling at the kid’s mom, the guy wasted no time getting child protective services involved for the parents’ reckless and ghastly behavior
The original poster (OP), a 22-year-old living in Europe, couldn’t believe what he stumbled into after work one day. His upstairs neighbors, who already had a rocky relationship with his family, decided to “teach” their 5-year-old daughter a lesson... by abandoning her in another city and telling her to find her way home alone.
The little girl, terrified and crying, somehow made it to the train station, where she spotted OP. She obviously had no idea how to read bus schedules or train routes and was basically stranded.
OP comforted her and brought her home safely, furious that her parents had risked her life just to make a point. When he and his mother confronted the girl’s parents, they defended themselves, claiming the child “needed to learn responsibility.” They showed no guilt whatsoever, only stubborn justification.
Now, OP’s family plans to contact child protective services, insisting the parents crossed every possible line. He tells netizens he still can’t stop thinking about how close this child came to real danger, and how, if he hadn’t failed his driving test that week, he might not have been there to save her at all.
Honestly? It’s horrible just thinking about what might have happened to that little girl had OP not been in the right place at the right time. As for her parents, talk about taking “tough love” too far, right? While parenting isn’t one-size-fits-all, just what are the different types? And where do OP’s unhinged neighbors fit in? We went looking for answers.
Image credits: EyeEm / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The pros at Psychology Today say research begun by developmental psychologist Diana Baumrind in the 1960s identified three main parenting styles: authoritarian, indulgent, and authoritative. Then, later research threw in a fourth: neglectful. Not every parent fits perfectly into one of these boxes, but they pretty accurately describe how a lot of people approach raising their kids.
Authoritarian parenting is about sticking to rules, a dominating style, and a lot of control. Indulgent parents flip that script; they're super attentive and provide tons of warmth and interaction, but rules? Constraints? Not really their thing.
Authoritative parents hit a sweet spot, encouraging independence while also setting clear limits and boundaries. Finally, neglectful parenting is when parents basically phone it in and are happy to let the tablets and TV do the babysitting, or, in OP’s scenario, the downstairs neighbor.
Caitlin Geng from Medical News Today explains that childhood trauma can occur when a child witnesses or experiences an event that makes them feel threatened, unsafe, or unable to cope. The scariest part? These experiences don't just fade away; they can shape a person's emotions and behavior well into adulthood, potentially triggering mental health conditions like bipolar disorder, depression, and anxiety.
Here’s hoping that OP and his family’s evidence will help CPS serve justice on the monstrous neighbors and get the traumatized little girl the help she needs. Otherwise, who knows what her parents will pull next?
What would you have done if you'd found yourself in OP’s shoes? Do you think getting CPS involved is enough, or should he loop in law enforcement, too? Share your thoughts in the comments!
In the comments, readers slammed the kid’s parents for being so irresponsible and strongly suggested the original poster get the police involved too
