‘I hate being dragged into situations I want no part in’

I hate it when people try to pull me into situations that I do not want to be part of. Recently, I had quite a few things to do and my day was going well. However, when I went to the shops things started to go downhill. I ended up in quite a moral dilemma, unsure of what I should do.

As I walked into one of my local shops, the owner immediately called me aside. He handed me a photograph of a woman that had been downloaded from the store security cameras. According to the owner, this woman had got away with a few hundred dollars from them. He said it was his mistake. He told me while serving her for some reason he became distracted (I have noticed this with him before) and he said pressed the wrong key on his computer and the woman became richer. Apparently she was long gone before the mistake was realised.

Holding the photograph of this woman in front of me, the store owner asked me if I could find out the name of the woman. I did not think that was very fair of him. I recognised the local lady instantly, but did not know her name. He asked if I could find out her details and her address, with social media the way it is shouldn’t be all that hard to do.

I thought about all of this on my way home, taking time to look at the photograph. This whole situation was gnawing away at me and I had started to feel quite ill because of it. I decided not to go any further with the matter, and I ripped up the photo of the woman.

Although I have never stolen anything in my life, I have made a few questionable decisions and taken what others might consider the wrong action over the years. I don’t feel I have the right to judge or take the moral high ground on anything or anybody. My feeling is that if the woman is honest (and she realises an error has been made) she will go back to the shop and get it sorted out. If not, I am sure the business owner will be a lot more attentive with future customers.

How would you have responded in this situation? What do you do when you are brought into a situation you wish to have no part in?

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