Missing Dutch Teen Found
It’s a widely accepted fact that teenagers put their parents through hell. You know, staying out late, hanging with a bad crowd, behaving like snotty little know-it-alls, jetting off to the Dutch Antilles to thwart government oversight of their bid to become the youngest person to solo circumnavigate . . . Wait, what? In less time than it takes to bail out Junior for stealing your car and putting it through a storefront, Dutch authorities announced the disappearance — and subsequent recovery on St. Maarten — of 14-year-old Laura Dekker.
Dekker, then 13, made global headlines earlier in the year when she stated her intentions to become the youngest person to solo circumnavigate. Dutch authortities quickly intervened, and the courts ruled in August that Dekker was too young and inexperienced to take on such a grueling expedition on her own. Apparently no amount of foot-stamping and pouting would change their minds.
Yesterday, authorities revealed that Dekker’s mother had reported her daughter missing three days earlier. Then came word last night that the young sailor was found, alive and well, in the Dutch Antilles. Those same authorities insist that it’s impossible for an underage child to fly out of the country unattended, but there’s no official word on who — if anyone — accompanied the girl. Nor is there confirmation of exactly why she ran away from home.
What is known is that, after the court’s ruling, Dekker was appointed a temporary guardian, though she was allowed to continue living with her father, who is seen by many as the driving force behind her dream. All major decisions regarding the young girl — such as allowing her to leave the country — were to have been approved by the guardian.
Though her case was scheduled for review next summer, a spokesperson for the family says that Dekker "didn’t feel that confident any more that one day she could really sail away." Comments such as these could easily lead people to believe that Dekker, possibly with the encouragement of her father, skipped town to do what she wanted, regardless of what she’s been told. Sort of like a petulant teen who’s been forbidden to go to that out-of-town Adam Lambert concert but sneaks out anyway. Unfortunately, this incident won’t go far in proving her maturity and decision-making skills.