Safety Tidbits: 5-6-13

The Cookie Thief

A woman was waiting at an airport one night, with several long hours before her flight. She hunted for a book in the airport shops, bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.

She was engrossed in her book but happened to see, that the man sitting beside her, as bold as could be… grabbed a cookie or two from the bag in between, which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene.

So she munched the cookies and watched the clock, as the gutsy cookie thief diminished her stock. She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by, thinking, “If I wasn’t so nice, I would blacken his eye.”

With each cookie she took, he took one too, when only one was left, she wondered what he would do. With a smile on his face, and a nervous laugh, he took the last cookie and broke it in half.  He offered her half, as he ate the other, she snatched it from him and thought… oooh, brother. This guy has some nerve and he’s also rude, why he didn’t even show any gratitude!

She had never known when she had been so galled, and sighed with relief when her flight was called. She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate, refusing to look back at the thieving ingrate.

She boarded the plane, and sank in her seat, then she sought her book, which was almost complete. As she reached in her baggage, she gasped with surprise, there was her bag of cookies, in front of her eyes.

If mine are here, she moaned in despair, the others were his, and he tried to share. Too late to apologize, she realized with grief, that she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief.  Valerie Cox

I like this story! – Luckily the lady in the story was able to avoid making a scene by accusing the man with the cookies of stealing hers… but how many times to we react too quickly without all the facts?

Be careful about judging situations, too quickly?  As a father, former supervisor and safety professional, I can tell you I have made many assumptions without taking the time to gather all the facts! And that is never fair or right, no matter how busy you may be at the time!

Assumptions are often wrong… whether dealing with friends, co-workers, or family members we’re generally on the same team…and most people are trying very hard to do the right thing!  Assumptions can lead to accusations and accusations often lead to the resentment of those accused. Make time to get the facts!

Assumptions and accusations never promote team work. Give people the respect they are due, ask questions, make your own observations, then review the information and see where the facts lead. Many incidents occur as a result of improper or ineffective communication.  Whatever your role, take the time to fulfill your responsibilities – you owe it to the other team members to get it right.  Safety Wayne

Remember: Life is what you make it! Thank God for the moisture!

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Thanks for the share, WK!