Charles Dickens wrote “A Tale of Two Cities” in 1859. The opening line of that novel is famous: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” This quote rings true today as Hoosiers, especially those involved in Indiana agriculture, attempt to put their lives back together after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reaction to the crisis has brought out the best of people. Read about that later this week in this same column. Western Boone FFA members, their advisor, parents and supporters collected money and food for people in need. It’s an uplifting story.

Meanwhile, the crisis also has brought out the worst in people. Perhaps that’s because when things shut down, many people were left without work. Government help only goes so far. Maybe it’s simply because some people are prone to take advantage of the system.

I noticed a disturbing image when getting supplies at a Rural King store. I saw a flyer, much like a “wanted” poster, along the checkout wall, showing a young man in the middle of the photo headed for a door. The caption said the man was wanted for questioning for shoplifting and encouraged anyone with information to let the store manager know. The last line indicated it was important to discourage theft to help keep costs down for other customers.

Firsthand experience

Just a few days later, I was buying one last bag of milk replacer at another farm store to finish feeding two orphaned lambs. I was wearing my mask, and the young cashier was standing behind a plexiglass stand protecting her face from germs. My grandson and brother-in-law were with me, also wearing masks.

As I concentrated on inserting my credit card, preparing to finish the transaction, suddenly a loud, blasting noise began. It grabbed my attention, and I looked at the clerk, who looked briefly at the door, then back at me.

“Somebody just stole something,” she said, matter-of-factly. Her face showed frustration, but she quickly returned her attention to my transaction.

Stunned, I just looked at her. “Store policy is we are just supposed to let them go,” she said. I put my credit card away, thanked her, grabbed my milk replacer and headed for the door.

Once outside, my brother-in-law told me what he’d seen. A young man bypassed him and my grandson, who were standing behind and to the side of me, and made a beeline for the door. “It looked like he never even thought of going to the cash register,” my brother-in-law said. “Something was in his pocket, and he just flat-out stole it.” He was long gone by the time we got outside.

I hope it was an isolated incident. But the young clerk’s reaction and the photo I saw at a different store a few days earlier lead me to believe that perhaps it wasn’t.

Stealing things, conning people with internet scams — those aren’t actions that will help us heal. Deceitfulness may be reality and a fact of life, but it’s something we all need to be aware of and work to help prevent. Hopefully those who truly need help after the havoc wreaked by this crisis can find it without sinking to those levels.

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