Have you ever been the victim of a crime? What happened?
I did a Theatre Study Abroad in London, UK, during spring term 2004. That's 19-year-old me, overlooking the city from St. Paul's Cathedral. I'd been in the country all of a week and a half when my messenger bag was stolen from under my seat at a play at the the National Theatre. I hadn't wrapped the strap around my leg and the Standing Room Only section was immediately behind my seat. I was just asking to get robbed, really.
Of course, I was devastated. My bag contained my personal journal, theatre journal, camera, camera journal, someone else's copy of Peter Pan, wallet, and other ephemera. I went to the police, submitted a report, and figured that was the end of all of those things. I went about canceling my card, replacing what I could, and getting back to having a great time in this phenomenal city. One friend mailed me a new camera, I found a cute wallet with butterflies on Portabello Road, and my parents withdrew money from my account and placed it in that of a friend who was in London with me via his parents, so I wasn't borrowing money from anyone, just getting it differently. My new debit card came via another friend who visited me in London for my birthday on his way to Finland. My parents knew him, and it was safer than mailing a card internationally.
It was an inconvenience, to be sure, but it really didn't damper my spirits after a day or so. I committed to watching my things better, mourned the loss of my journals, and carried on.
The big surprise was that my bag was found not very long after the theft, by some trashcan behind a building, if I recall correctly. The really big surprise was that my journals were still there! Of course the thieves had taken the wallet, book, and other stuff I didn't care about the same way, but I had my journals and that's all I cared about!
Despite all this, London is still my favorite city in all the world (thus far), and I'd go back in a heartbeat. I've just learned to keep a closer eye on my things!
I did a Theatre Study Abroad in London, UK, during spring term 2004. That's 19-year-old me, overlooking the city from St. Paul's Cathedral. I'd been in the country all of a week and a half when my messenger bag was stolen from under my seat at a play at the the National Theatre. I hadn't wrapped the strap around my leg and the Standing Room Only section was immediately behind my seat. I was just asking to get robbed, really.
Of course, I was devastated. My bag contained my personal journal, theatre journal, camera, camera journal, someone else's copy of Peter Pan, wallet, and other ephemera. I went to the police, submitted a report, and figured that was the end of all of those things. I went about canceling my card, replacing what I could, and getting back to having a great time in this phenomenal city. One friend mailed me a new camera, I found a cute wallet with butterflies on Portabello Road, and my parents withdrew money from my account and placed it in that of a friend who was in London with me via his parents, so I wasn't borrowing money from anyone, just getting it differently. My new debit card came via another friend who visited me in London for my birthday on his way to Finland. My parents knew him, and it was safer than mailing a card internationally.
It was an inconvenience, to be sure, but it really didn't damper my spirits after a day or so. I committed to watching my things better, mourned the loss of my journals, and carried on.
The big surprise was that my bag was found not very long after the theft, by some trashcan behind a building, if I recall correctly. The really big surprise was that my journals were still there! Of course the thieves had taken the wallet, book, and other stuff I didn't care about the same way, but I had my journals and that's all I cared about!
Despite all this, London is still my favorite city in all the world (thus far), and I'd go back in a heartbeat. I've just learned to keep a closer eye on my things!
2 comments:
Losing my journals, scriptures, or photos would be absolutely devastating to me. I'd recover of course, but it's real hard to put a price on those things. It's not like you can just replace them.
Wow! It's amazing you recovered your journals.
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