She walked the bread/baking isle with her recycled shopping bag slightly open on her left arm. As she perused the Isle, she placed items in her bag. I thought, 'is she stealing? Nah...she is not stealing, she just didn't want to be bothered with a big cart 🛒. I say to myself, making shit up in my own mind to explain her actions. 'She will pay for her stuff', I reasoned. 'I hope?'
I picked up my few items, burger 🍔, eggs🥚, coleslaw, mini potatoes, and salmon and headed to the cashier. Standing patiently in line I had forgotten about the woman until I saw a shadow in my peripheral. It was the woman passing all the cashiers proceeding to the out doors. She stopped nonchalantly by one of the empty cash registers and looked at the little gums and candy items, then she strategically walked pass. As I stood in line I looked at her.
The woman pretended to look around as if looking for something while she cunningly slid to the side moving closer to the door.
Noticing her creep out the door I tried to get the attention of the cashier. However, the cashier was too busy chitty chatting with a customer about her children, vacation etc., she didn't hear me. Once I was close enough, I told her about the woman who lifted the items. I pointed out the woman who was making slow deliberate steps away pretending to look at the plants🌵☘️ outside on sale. The perfect excuse should she be caught. She could say, "Oh I am not leaving I came out to get some plants."
The cashier looked at the woman walking away, her bag full and promptly said as loud as you please, "I like my life, let her go. Me, I like my life! You never know what those people have on them. I love my life!" You know that song, I love my life?" she asks me, I nodded yes, trying not to laugh in simultaneous hysterics and horror.
"Well, I love my life, let her go with the items, I hope they serve her well. God will take care of it."
Smiling I moved to the next available cashier. As the woman made her get away as she realized she wasn't being followed.
As I packed my bags. I thought of the cashier's response and remembered that the grocery was robbed once before and one of the cashier's was badly hurt. Hence, her, "I love my life" and her unwillingness to get involved. She didn't even attempt to pickup the phone call management.
Free groceries...
WOW!! Just the other day I saw a reel on shop lifting.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly is a thing and many are getting away with it due to fear of possible violence when/if confronted. A legitimate fear in these times however most people don't realize that we all suffer the consequences anyway by the rising cost owners apply to recover loss.
DeleteDear Rhapsody,
ReplyDeleteThis is my small contribution to the topic.
The subject is a thought provoking issue because of its complexity and I was hesitant to write about it. We know that it is ethically wrong to steal even if you steal food. On the one hand, some sociologists think that whether stealing is immoral or not depends on the context of the action. On the other, some individuals think that they have been unfairly treated by society so they feel angry, hurt, frustrated and isolated. Futhermore, they feel that society has failed them, that they have been marginalized from the economic advantages of this opulent society.
This feeling of being left to their own devices could bring about a deep feeling of resentment and social disengagement. It is a well-know fact that disengaged individuals may lean towards unsocial behaviors as a way to seek what they think is "justice" in response to real or perceived grievances. Unfortunately, these acts can have a very negative impact on society. This could be the case with this woman or she may just be a person who think that rules and ethics don't apply to her.
Have a wonderful day ,
Edith
Dear Edith:
ReplyDeleteVery profound response. What is life if not full of complexities? At the end though, when all is shaved down it comes down to one simple truth, choice. She chose to steal. Of course, It does not take away from whatever her reality, lived experience, is that maybe the motivator for the resulting choice. Everyday we are all faced with choices from mundane to the complex. In our humanness we don't always make the right choice for the right reason. Sometimes our reality of survival thumps the morality of "right" and "wrong".