Christmas is a time when a child’s only concern should be: “What will Santa bring me?” Kids should be able to enjoy, in safety, the wonderful displays, latest video games and sampling of new toys. As parents, we should be able to watch their eyes light up as they dream of the hours of fun they will have after opening their presents.

Christmas is a time when we would like to forget that there are bad people and bad things in this world that we all wish would somehow disappear, perhaps by Christmas magic.

For one little boy and his family, Christmas’ magic recently went dim. While holiday shopping in Wal-Mart, the boy was accosted and molested by a sexual predator in the store — yes, in the store! We’d like to think that Christmas is the one time of the year when perhaps even these monsters would give children a break. But, it’s just not so.

Caught up in the excitement of Christmas, this is the time of the year when parents need to be extra cautious of their children’s whereabouts. When children are excited, they tend to forget. We all do. And Christmas is a time of high excitement when they potentially can forget all the rules, as this little boy did, and go with a stranger. As parents, we cannot let them forget. The stakes are much too high.

While shopping with our children this holiday season, we need to remember that stores are places to shop, not recreation centers for children. Yes, stores lure you and your children there to test the latest games, sample the newest toys, look at the window displays and have fun. But, they require you to watch your children. This should be obvious and has been said many times, still it’s important to repeat it again: Parents must be responsible for observing their children and knowing where they are at all times. Child molesters do not care that Christmas is a time of joy, peace and love. If they see a child who appears to be an easy target, they will take advantage of the opportunity, even in pubic places.

As parents, we are continually challenged with the belief that child molestation cannot happen to a child in our care. The people who perpetrate these crimes count on our inability to accept the fact that it can and our willingness to risk our children’s safety because of it. Help reduce the possibility of it happening to a child you love. Please, keep your children near your loving and watchful eye this holiday season.

James A. Jack is a former Chicago police detective and the author of “Three Boys Missing: The Tragedy That Exposed The Pedophilia Underworld.”