Jumping to conclusions

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photo credit: Jack

Actions have consequences. It is always a good idea to stop and think before we act. Why? we are not always going to have all the facts or be always correct in what we think or feel about a person or a particular situation. It is very easy, and perhaps understandably so, to react without thinking in certain situations especially if you feel compromised, are under threat or in despair. Whatever the reason we should always endeavour to step back and allow ourselves time to think rationally and be armed with sufficient information to make an informed decision.

I recall an incident that happened to me a while back. I was at home minding my own business, as you do, when I heard a slight commotion and raised voices followed immediately by a frantic knock at my door. I enquired who it was , a woman whose voice wasn’t familiar responded. I opened the door and  standing outside the doorway was a small and very agitated elderly lady. At first I couldn’t make out what she was saying apart from it having to do with a blue bag , but from her gestures I got that she wanted me to let her in. I wasn’t gonna do that!

 After several minutes of trying to figure out what her bag had to do with me, I realised she was actually accusing me of taking her bag and insisted that I let her in to look for it!

 By this time, I am not sure whether to be angry or sympathetic. I am thinking this poor woman has lost her mind and some family need to know where she is! But then the story progressed aided by the neighbours who were there with her and I gathered she left her bag in the corridor, by my door and it had somehow made its way into my flat since she couldn’t now find it. Now I am getting irate! The nerve of this woman. I gathered she had knocked on the door next to mine and the one across and they had denied seeing the bag, but she somehow wasn’t buying it from me! 

As calmly as I could manage I said to her  ‘ I don’t know anything about your bag, but I hope you find it. Now please leave me alone’. I then attempted to close the door. The little woman pushed herself into the doorway refusing to move, screaming angrily that she had all her valuables in her bag and wanted to come in and look for it. I felt really sorry for her at this point because she was clearly very agitated, but no way was she coming in to rummaged through my stuff looking for a bag that wasn’t there. Besides, if I had taken her bag why would I let her in to find it?

 For several minutes she was there alternating between crying, pleading and pushing against me to get in. One neighbour was calling her by name, so I realised she knew her and asked where she lived. She replied on the floor above. I asked her to get her away from me, but the little woman wouldn’t budge. Strange thing though in the midst of this predicament I am trying to figure out why her bag was even by my door if she didn’t even live on my floor?

I was under attack from a wiry irate OAP and there was not a thing I could do about it. She wasn’t responding to my request to move so the only way I could remove her would be to forcefully push her out. This may have done the trick, but she could also end up getting hurt. Not only did I not want this on my conscience, I could very well end up on the wrong side of the law! 

I was now thinking I could call the police, but I couldn’t get away from the door to reach my phone either, so I held my position and battled on. The neighbour across the hall left suddenly and went downstairs and a few moments later called out ‘ the bag is here!’ she had left the bag a floor down by the door immediately below me.

After going to collect her bag and checking the contents she made a 360 degree  about turn and had the nerve to come with outstretched arm to hug me and apologise! I was not feeling very forgiving at all. I just told her to leave me alone and close the door. The following morning early, she was back with an apology, supermarket flowers and a card. Lucky for her I don’t hold grudges for long!

I guess the moral of the story here is to not be too hasty to jump to conclusions.

If that bag had not shown up I sure that not only that woman, and both my neighbours as well as anyone else in the building they chose to tell would be pointing the finger at me as a thief. Actions have consequences. Think always before you act. Things are not always as they seem.


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