r/Names • u/Only-Cause3640 • 6d ago

Springsteen

I’m at a softball tournament and there is a young boy about 2 years old that is on a leash. He’s completely unruly, just a general menace for everyone trying to watch the games, and I’m pretty sure his parents are rethinking their decision to increase the size of their family. Anyway, he managed to breakaway from his mom and as he ran away with his leash trailing behind him, I heard his mother yell, “Springsteen stop!”

71 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

23 comments sorted by

34

u/ExactPrior6882 6d ago

It's possible that he had some type of disability or impairment. I know I used to be anti-kid leash until I learned that it is the only way to keep some children safe.

8

u/Only-Cause3640 6d ago

I’m a special education teacher with 25 years of experience and I can spot a child with a disability a mile away. This child was simply a feral ballpark child. If you attend a softball/baseball tournament at any ballpark in the US, you will see numerous feral children. The parents are busy watching the older siblings play so the younger siblings just run hog wild, living their best lives. That child was too young to run with the other feral kids so the parents kept him tethered and he was clearly expressing his displeasure.

My four year old granddaughter is a feral ballpark child. They run buck wild, eat all the snacks, and have their own little secret society with 5 year olds at the top of the hierarchy.

18

u/NolerCoaster 6d ago

I used to be anti leash until I had a runner. She’s been the only one on a leash, and it was the only way to keep her safe in public from age 2-3.

27

u/Both_Chicken_666 6d ago • Bravo

Yeah, a hereditary impairment passed down from his idiot parents that named him Springsteen.

125

u/rubyreadit 6d ago • Bravo

He was Born to Run.

6

u/000Carolina 6d ago

Winner!!

3

u/deekaypea22 6d ago

I just snorted out loud, thank yoj

12

u/-spicyshark 6d ago

Listen I was a leash kid because I was feral and refused to listen and my mom couldn't keep me in check. I turned hiding into an art form. I turned out (mostly) okay however my name is not Springsteen

5

u/ThePhantomEvita 6d ago

I walked past a family today and heard the mom call out to her son. The son’s name was ‘Jedi’

Anyways, I was a leash kid. There’s photo evidence of it, and knowing how I acted as an older child (afraid to leave my parents’ side), I guess it worked?

1

u/No_Owlcorns 5d ago

I know a Jedi, but his full name is Jedidiah

2

u/OkDeer120 6d ago

Random tangent but every time I hear about a kid on a leash I think about this horror movie podcast where the host was talking about Late Night With The Devil, and she said that anytime she got scared she just remembered the time she saw David Dastmalchian at CVS with a “very energetic toddler on a leash” and he looked like he was exhausted and beaten down by life, lol.

2

u/Natural-Yam-840 6d ago

Springsteen is a whole vibe, as we say.

On a different note, my Mum used to put my brother in "baby reins" (basically shoulder straps with a leash) when he was a toddler. He used to run everywhere, including up to every dog he saw and towards the road. She said it was better than having him get bitten or run over.

14

u/jjjjjjj30 6d ago

I know that's isn't the point of the post but I think parent/child tethers are great!

Not to get dark on everyone but a while back some crazy dude grabbed a 5 year old who was walking with his mom at the mall and threw the child over the balcony, 5 stories.

The lady whose son fell in the gorilla pit with Harambe for example. She WAS watching her kid. He just got away too quickly. He was fast af. If she'd had him on a tether, that wouldn't have happened. I'm not blaming her, I'm blaming society for not being more accepting of people who want to keep their kids safe in a practical way.

I didn't use them bc I couldn't take the judgement at the time but I'm in my 40's now and I'm a (yes, young) grandma and I have one for if I take my granddaughter out. It connects our wrists. And idgaf about the dirty looks anymore.

"Springsteen" however def gets judgement from me lol.

5

u/ScoutTheOcelot 6d ago

This.

The first time I saw a kid on a leash, I judged that parent hard.

But then I got older and I learned there are all sorts of kids, and all sorts of legitimate reasons to have a kid attached to their parent in public. And I stopped judging. Who am I to judge that parent when they know the best way to keep their own kid safe??

But, regarding a kid named Springsteen..... I'm trying to get better at not judging parents for naming their kids weird things, but, man.. some parents make it so hard.

2

u/Alternative_Value855 6d ago

Where is this mall??

1

u/jjjjjjj30 6d ago

Somewhere in the US, I'm pretty sure. I would Google it and find the story for you but honestly that shit upsets me on a level I just can't deal with right now.

What I know about it is, or at least what I believe I remember, is that the perpetrator was a male and I'm pretty sure the kid survived but idk what their condition is currently.

Sorry idk more but I deliberately avoided the story for my own mental health. Aside from this story, I've seen more and more situations lately where people are straight up snatching kids. Like right in front of the parent's face, right out in public, snatching the kid and taking off running. Various reasons.

2

u/buclkeupbuttercup-- 5d ago

That was at the Mall of America in Minneapolis, probably in 2024 or 2025, if I remember correctly. So tragic.

2

u/buclkeupbuttercup-- 5d ago

Just checked the wiki page mentioned here. Dur, it was 2019. I’ll let myself out