The kids and I were on a nature walk at Diamond Hill. We used to do this periodically. We’d climb up the old ski slope then walk down one of the less steep nature trails. In some sections, the ski slope got pretty steep, you had to scramble up using your hands and feet. More of a crawl really. We’re on the steep section crawling along one day when I put my hand down on something. I picked it up and discovered that it’s a wallet. I opened it up and find there’s a license, school ID, and other various cards and things inside. Looks to me like some local high school kid has lost his wallet.
I show it to the kids and put it in my pocket. The rest of the walk, the kids are talking about the wallet I found and what I’m going to do with it. I tell them I’m going to return it to it’s rightfull owner. I decide this will be a good object lesson for them. I can teach them about honesty, and the joy that comes from helping your fellow man.
I get the address off the license, it’s just around the corner. It’s less than a mile from where we are. I asked the kids what we should do. Should we throw the license in the trash, should we mail it back or should we try to take it back ourselves. We discuss the wallet and our options for a while and I decide we should swing by the address on the license. I think to myself that this will do the kids some good. It will teach them a lesson in integrity and honesty and the joy that comes from helping people.
I find the house. The kids and I go up to the door and ring the bell. A woman opens the door. I introduce myself. I explain that I found a wallet and was returning it. I handed this woman he wallet. She takes it, opens it up looks at me and says “The money’s gone, that figures” looks up and glares at me. She then goes on to ask what I want. I said I wanted nothing. I told her the kids and I were just trying to do a good deed. She asks why I had brought it back. I told her about the license and that I figured her son (?) needed it. She responded that there was no money in the wallet so she can’t give me anything, continuing to glare at me the whole time. She asks me to step in. She said she’d try to get her son up so he can thank me himself. As she turns, she yells to somebody inside that there was a person at the door with a wallet and that the wallet was empty, the money was gone.
At this point I said no thanks were necessary, turned around and walked off the porch. The kids just said “That wasn’t very nice”
I found a wallet on the great Diamond Hill, I searched out the owner and drove it to his door. I returned the wallet asking nothing in return other than the opportunity to teach my kids a lesson about good deeds. And in return, I am for all intents and purposes, accused of taking the money that may or may not have been in the wallet in the first place.
So, what lesson do you suppose was learned this day? Wasn’t the one I was trying for. That’s for sure.
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