Fear

Friday evening I experienced fear as I have never experienced it before.
Ethan was missing.
He was only gone for a few minutes, maybe 5, but if this has ever
happened to you then you know that those few minutes seem like
forever.
I had been at the Rexburg Farmer's Market helping my mom at her
booth, later I went home and returned to the market with Ethan.
The evening was winding down, I ran into an old friend, Ethan was right in front of me on a bench. A moment later I look up and don't see Ethan.
"Dad, did Mom take Ethan?"
"I'm not sure."
Ran over to my mom. No Ethan.
Back to my dad. No Ethan.
The market area's not that big but close to main street and a couple of parking lots.
I start searching the area calling out his name. Thankfully my mom had just painted his face like a pirate so when people asked what he looked like I was able to tell them that.
Its been maybe 2 minutes but I'm feeling borderline hysterical.
3 boys are playing at the front of the Tabernacle.
"Have you seen a little boy painted like a pirate?"
the smallest of the 3, "I saw him go in there."
the oldest of the 3, "you have to go in on the side."
As I run up to the front doors, all of which are locked, what the second boy had said wasn't making sense.... if you have to go in on the side and the three of you are playing here at the front, how on earth did the first little boy see my son go inside?!?!?! If I had only been thinking... had I paused to stop and ask the little boy where and when he saw Ethan I could have been spared the agony of the minutes that followed. But due to the fact that I had been up since 4:30 that morning I wasn't thinking about thinking, I simply wanted to find Ethan.
By this point I'm literally running around the market area frantically calling out Ethan's name, nearly in tears, and praying. I'm making my way to the shaved ice shack by main street when one of the men who had been helping me look said, "they've found him!"
I ran back to see my mom carrying Ethan just outside the Tabernacle. I practically tore him from my mom, found the nearest chair and clung to my little boy. I can't believe I didn't break down. I just sat there holding him. When I asked him where he had gone he said, "I went inside the castle." and did he hear me calling his name? "yeah. I said, here I am!"
Needless to say we had a good long chat about the importance of asking mommy if he wants to go somewhere before running off.
I didn't see who found him initially but based off of what my mom told me I believe what happened was this:
after checking the front of the Tabernacle the older of the three boys asked the younger one who said he had seen Ethan where he had seen him. He then went inside the Tabernacle, found him and led him outside where my mom was making her way into the Tabernacle. If that's what happened then I'm so grateful he took the time to actually think about what the younger boy said and take action.
There are no words to describe the pain I felt inside when Ethan couldn't be found. And definitely no adequate words to describe how grateful I am that he was found.