Thing #25
(And... here we go trying to start at the beginning and work my way forward through the book)
Something you found.
I found $20 on the ground once. It was one of the numerous times that I found money on the sidewalk. But I didn't pick it up. I only pick up coins; partly because I superstitiously keep stashes of lucky pennies all over the place, but mostly because I've always felt that such a substantial wad of cash is not mine to pick up. I get this insane guilty feeling like I'm stealing someone else's money. What if they realize they lost it and back-track their steps to find it? If I pick it up, it wouldn't be there for them to find. So, I just left it and thought: if the person it belonged to doesn't come back for it, someone who needs it more than me will find it next.
This had been my philosophy for a long time. That is, until I told someone about it and they thought I was crazy for surpassing it. I've thought that maybe they're right; maybe it was dropped 'for me'; that I'm the "next person" who needs it. So I decided that the next time I find a lonely, left-behind bill like that, maybe I'll pick it up. Of course, I decided this about 2 years ago and since then I haven't found any again. Figures.
