Actually.. am I insane?

[JJ1992]

Right so,

I was at the park today with my son. Being school holidays, it was busy.
I glanced over at a (?) Grandfather / dad/ male relative with two children, a boy about 9 and a girl around 7, he was helping the girl on the climbing frame and I really felt the way his hand was holding her was inappropirate.. his hand was in-between her legs and he was either pushing up or her weight was fully down on his hand. She was wearing a skirt which is irrelevant but made it look worse
( his hand wasn't up her skirt).
She was up high and definitely would've needed help but the way he was holding her really unsettled me. I kept watching after that because i had to make sure this kid wasnt in danger ... he continued to help her on different climbing frames and then she played with her brother for a while, he was nearby and just on his phone.

I was sure I heard her call him dad too, but he looked far too old to be her dad, he was defintiely at least in his 60s.

When I first noticed, I really felt like I didn't know what to do, how do you help a child you think might be in a risky situation like that?

Does anyone else think it is weird to touch a kid in that way?

I hate that my mind automatically thinks the worst in these situations.

How else do you get a child up the climbing frame.. I'm forever but-shoving my kids up them things.. i think you're overthinking and not sure why his age is relevant

His hand wasn’t up her skirt. So I really don’t think that sounds inappropriate at all.

You say his hand was not up her skirt but inbetween her legs ? It sounds like he was just helping to support her on the climbing frame.

My father was 58 when I was born. They don't have a "use by" date like us, remember? 😁

A ‘bottom boost’ is a regular thing in our household.

I think you are overthinking. It's very unlikely he'd use this moment to abuse her. He was probably holding her awkwardly so she doesn't fall.

Would you have thought the same if it was the girls mum/nan? My boy is quite chunky so I usually have both hands shoving him up something by his arse cheeks, is that inappropriate?

Sounds fine to me.

A friend of mine is early 40s but looks older apparently. He's been mistaken for his child's grandfather on more than 1 occasion. He thinks its preposterous, but I kinda see where they are coming from

Wouldn’t think twice about helping either child on a high climbing frame by supporting them holding their crotch. But they are smaller and I’m female. Is your issue because he’s male

I push my 7yr old up like this all the time.

Where is it school holidays?

My issue is definitely because he was male and she was female and just the fact it was one hand right in between. It just looked odd.. it wasn't like he was pushing her bum up it was right up in the middle..
But he was helping her ! And the rest of the time he was just holding her legs rather than the weird hand move.. maybe he just got himself in a right awkward spot trying to help her!

No i don't thinks it's weird that he was helping her. What i do think is weird is that you immediately sexualised an innocent encounter like that.

I was doing this exact same thing to dd2 the other day, it's the easiest way of helping them. You'd never be able to report it anyway op as you have no info on them 😁

I watch too many crime docs..

I voted YANBU to think that and to be a little vigilant. More people should be alert to possible signs of abuse. I also think the man WNBU to give the child a misplaced crotch-shove. It happens!

You say she called him dad but he was 'too old' looking to be her dad? So what, he's kidnapped and brainwashed her and forced her to call him that for sexual thrills?

Men can produce children aged about 80?!
I'd say you might be overreacting. If the kid was upset by it maybe it might look weird but that doesn't seem.the case.

I was more thinking he might have been an adoptive dad or stepdad, I do know basic human biology but in reality.. how often do older guys in their sixties subject themselves to the madness of young kids? Then take them to the park solo? 😂

I don’t think anything sinister was going on

What a weird comment. Why would an older dad not take his kids to the park? It may not be the norm but it does happen.

Not everyone or everything is perverted.

Yeah I think so. Just unfortunate the poor guy had a creepy look about him so I judged him !

If he was going to molest the kid, he wouldn't do it in the park in full view of everyone. He was just helping on ther climbing frame.

Why are people shoving kids up climbing frames by their crotch, ffs? I have four of them and I’ve never done this!

if they can’t climb independently, they don’t go up. That’s how you teach them their own abilities.