I'M A THIEF

I walked out of a store the other day with a magazine I didn't pay for.  I had put it under my purse so that it didn't get damaged by the heaping pile of groceries I planned on loading into my cart.  I never moved my purse when I paid for my groceries and didn't think twice about it.

When I was done paying for my groceries I walked out to the truck, put all the groceries in the back and then grabbed my purse to put inside, so that I could return my shopping cart.  When I lifted it up my purse I saw the magazine and I immediately felt terrible. 

I fished my wallet out of my purse, grabbed the magazine and marched the cart back into the store.  I went to the checkout I had paid for my groceries at and proceeded to tell the lady that I had accidentally walked out of the store without paying for the magazine, and that I would like to do so now.  By the look on her face you'd have thought I had 3 heads.  She was flabbergasted that I would even return to pay for this item that I could have just taken.  After she realized I was serious, she thanked me for being honest. 

The thing that gets me is, how horrible is it that people are utterly shocked when you do the right thing.  And not only that, they have to thank you for doing the right thing.  I just thought that being honest was expected.  That it was part of life.

I mean I had full intentions of paying for the magazine when I put it in my cart, so why wouldn't I go back and pay for it after discovering my mistake?  I could have easily celebrated my little victory of getting a "great deal" on something and driving out of the parking lot at break-neck speed, but how good would I feel knowing that it was stolen?  It felt good doing what was right.  The great thing is, leaving without paying for it didn't even cross my mind. 

In a world full of dishonesty its good to know that I'm still honest.  It makes me feel good at night to know that I still choose to do the right thing.  Can you imagine how great our world would be if everyone just did their part and was honest and owned up to their mistakes?  Regardless, every time I look for a recipe in the magazine I know that I made the right choice, and I feel good about who I am and what I stand for!