"Soothing"

by bristow 21.05.13 16:48

To me the word soothing conjures up the thought of someone calming another, stroking their head, saying things like 'there, there' you'll be alright, come on now, talking quietly, rocking them, cuddling them. This usually happens after a nasty incident, a physical injury.
Soothing is to make things all better.
You CANNOT sooth an abandoned child and then walk away and they will be alright,, they would immediately start crying and being upset again.

by Nina 21.05.13 18:03

bristow wrote:To me the word soothing conjures up the thought of someone calming another, stroking their head, saying things like 'there, there' you'll be alright, come on now, talking quietly, rocking them, cuddling them. This usually happens after a nasty incident, a physical injury.
Soothing is to make things all better.
You CANNOT sooth an abandoned child and then walk away and they will be alright,, they would immediately start crying and being upset again.

Exactly. It has been discussed before a child who becomes so very upset doesn't just stop, end of. Even if they fall asleep they will still whimper occasionally.
In my book soothe is what you do to pain, sunburn, a bad ache and it is usually a drug, an ointment or a hot water bottle that helps.
Anyway it is just one word in a load of garbage imo.

by Guest 21.05.13 20:15

My words, Nina. Remembering Mrs. Fenn's testimony, I can NOT think of any possibility that a crying child, screams getting worse with time [75 minutes], would be quiet in a sec when someone [parents?] enter the room.

And then... this mysterious middle-aged couple ... deary me ... managed too to "soothe" the crying girl ... and that's the end of ...

Yeah, sure.

Sometimes, when I start reading in again on this case [fortunately many more things of interest in life], I wonder WHY I still bother to stay abreast with the worse scenario ever in FICTION [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Spaß beiseite: I really, really want this case solved and the culprits brought to justice.

by plebgate 21.05.13 22:07

soothing and weeping.

soothing to me is as Bristow stated. - weeping (crying quietly)

Soothing and weeping do seem strange words to use to me when describing help being given to a distressed child.

by **PeterMac** 21.05.13 22:31

plebgate wrote:soothing and weeping.
soothing to me is as Bristow stated. - weeping (crying quietly)
Soothing and weeping do seem strange words to use to me when describing help being given to a distressed child.

But the whole thing operates in a soft focus vaseline-on-lens mist, or miasma, of Disneyland.
So we don't have "screaming, crying, getting up, wetting the bed, shouting at the child to stop it crying, smacking it (it happens and is very effective !)
we have "soothing, weeping softly, proud father moment, beautiful children, talented, played tennis at age 3, swam in ice cold pools for recreation, sailed for England, read the entire Potter oeuvre, had seen all the Dr Who episodes and had one favourite, . . ."

Is there anyone out there who thinks this is a normal description of normal people ?

by Guest 22.05.13 8:58

I would like to think that most "normal" people don't plaster their children in make-up, take inappropriate photos and use expressions like "loving and pleasing them".

Those unsettling elements make the things you mention PeterMac seem more palatable, though they do pose a health risk to diabetics!

by Liz Eagles 22.05.13 9:25

The whole thing is drenched in honey and sprinkled with rose petals and a good coating of glittery fairydust.

This is the downfall of Team McCann imo. Their family unit has been sanitised, sugar coated, dressed up and prepared for marketing.

Take a look at this extract from Gerry's blog. 20 May 2007. 17 days after Madeleine's disappearance. I don't know any family that lives like this in normal circumstances let alone after the disappearance of a child. The 'routine' he speaks of is astounding.

This extract is taken from the following link:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

on that link you will find screenshots available from Pamalam.

So, day 1 of Gerry's blog 17 days after Madeleine went missing.

[color:a46f=000000]'Our
day starts around 6.30am with us all waking
up around the same time.
We have breakfast with Sean and Amelie and our close family/friends who
are here with us. Then its
clean nappies and
clothes for Sean and Amelie followed by showers etc for the rest of us.

Usually there’s some
free time then for a few stories or games with the twins before heading out.

9.00-9.15
We take Sean and Amelie to
Kids’ Club. They really
enjoy it and run in. They know the staff well and the staff are all
excellent. Both love the
domestic corner and
Amelie particularly likes to look after ‘babies’. We use the kids club a
bit like nursery
at home but we think
Sean and Amelie still think they are on holiday!

9.30~12.15. We
return to the apartments, usually
for a series of meetings
with our press officer, Mark Warner Reps, occasionally Consulate staff,
lawyers and British Liaison
officers. During this
time we catch up with family and close friends, usually by telephone and
discuss ideas how to keep Madeleine’s
profile high especially
throughout continental Europe.

12.30 Time to pick up Sean and
Amelie from Kids’ club
then head back to
apartment for lunch, which has usually been prepared by one of our
family/friends group who have been tremendously
supportive.

13.30 –14.30 This is time to spend time playing with the twins either in the apartment or in the
play area next to kids club.

14.30-15.00
Usually we take the twins back to Kids’ Club although Sean has had
the odd afternoon in the
apartment as it’s a bit cooler and he’s not much of a sun worshipper!
They have been
taking part in many
different activities including painting, singing, stories, swimming,
trips to the beach and they have
lots of toys to play
with.

15.00~17.00 We try to get some time together alone, going
for a walk to talk things over
or getting some
exercise. This is often the time for quiet trips to the church for
prayers.

17.00-17.30 Meet kids
for high tea with other
mums and dads. They love pasta and have been doing really well with
their vegetables although a few
chips have been squeezed
in.

17.30-18.30. Games with kids at play area. Amelie loves trying to get in the baby pool!

18.30-19.30 Bath and story time with the twins.

20.00 We put the kids to bed.

20.30-23.00
We try to
sit down for a family
meal, again usually cooked by one of the small family group out here
with us. Chat about the day’s
events and plan the next
day

23.30 bed and prayer for Madeleine that she will be returned to us safely ASAP.

In

addition to above we try
to attend various church services during the week, and make multiple
phone calls to family and friends.
We try to watch the main
news early morning and late evening but have had almost no time to read
the newspapers or even look
at the pictures!

Kate
is a keen runner and in the last few days has tried to include a run in
the daily routine. Yesterday
(Sat) at 7am we ran to
the monument at the top of the steep cliff overlooking Praia de Luz. We
reached it in 19 minutes.'

I don't know of anyone who could or would take the time to write this stuff when their daughter was 'abducted' 17 days prior.

by russiandoll 22.05.13 10:12

15.00~17.00 We try to get some time together alone, going
for a walk to talk things over
or getting some
exercise. This is often the time for quiet trips to the church for
prayers.

I'll bet it was!

as for the rest of the stuff.......who gives a flying one Gerry...your child is missing.

by Guest 22.05.13 10:48

Would you soothe a child if you found her cowering?

by suzyjohnson 22.05.13 10:50

I tried to post something last night but it seems to have got lost somewhere.

One thing that I was thinking was, if I was a witness who noticed a middle aged couple going into an apartment then how would I know what they were going into the building for? How would I know that their intention was to comfort a crying child unless I had spoken to them? Or unless I had heard them talking either to the child or to each other?

If I saw a man going into a house, for example, and then the house was burgled I might surmise later that the man was a burglar. But at the time I saw him, he could be the owner, visitor, burglar, delivery person, workman - how would I know his intention?

In this case, a witness sees a couple going into an apartment. Perhaps the witness was also aware that a child was crying in the apartment. Later, it is reported that a child is missing. Unless the couple later talk about the event, (in which case everyone would know who they were) how would I know why they went in?

There is something amiss with this report it seems to me. The only other explanation could be that the couple were trying to soothe MM by talking to her at the bedroom window, but that would mean MM opening the shutters by herself so that can't be right.

by worriedmum 22.05.13 11:39

yes SJ, it is a bit of a conundrum isn't it?

Unless you had x-ray eyes, it seems to me that these are the alternatives-

You were TOLD by the couple that they soothed a crying Madeleine

You were PRESENT with the couple when they soothed a crying Madeleine-

OTHERWISE surely it's a guess? There was crying(How do you know who from?) AND IT STOPPED?

The twins were very young, too young to be asked, and sadly Madeleine cannot tell us. Unless of course we are now about to be told that Madeleine DID tell someone.......Hmmmm [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

by russiandoll 22.05.13 13:46

In addition to all of the above great points: WHAT ABOUT THE TWINS?
prolonged weeping, loud enough to be heard by passers by through closed doors and windows,[ they must have been fairly close by 5a to have heard it, would be good to know where they were, considering people on a nearby balcony could not hear Jez and Gerry speaking outside 3rd May.
The twins did not need soothing? Did they sleep through this?
Were they there?

by Harriet94 24.05.13 11:10

I have been reading all the interesting comments about the use of the word soothe in recent reports. I looked it up and soothe can also mean to tell the truth. Could this be a cryptic message? Just a thought.

by aniandr 24.05.13 18:24

The couple Sooth a stranger child and Then walk off? Come on...if any stranger been in there one would stay the other go look for the parents. If it was a kidnapper they would just take the child. The twins as usual sleep through crying, strangers walking in an out of the appartement, kidnappers, parents....madeleine must have felt the place going crazy with at Them people Comming in and out. Luckely even at almost 4 years old every morning she apparently "moved ón" and only say "why didnt you come last Night when i was crying" and doesnt say anything like "a stranger was in my room last Night....ok 2 strangers....and a kidnappper.....and you and mom....and your friends". Any kid would be heartbroken the next Day imo and ask who the people were if anyone was there. And no child would be soothed by a stranger and Then just go back to sleep.

Its just as stupid as when jt States that she saw and abductor from behind....in the middel of the Night...and could describe the pyjamas and hair of a child that the abducted carries even though she can only see his back.

Imo the only statement that makes sense is the Smiths statement. I Think there is something realy wrong with the whole timeline.