When I first arrived her in early October, I navigated with streets with a quick pace and a scowl on my face. "Stay away from me", I conveyed through my body language. But then I got tired of being an angry/no nonsense person and carried myself more naturally. I don't smile at strangers quite as much as I usually do in San Francisco, but I've long lost the scowl from my first few days. I've also long lost that extra $20 in my pocket. It was spent a long time ago.
Today I rode the subte (Buensos Aires subway) to Plaza Congresso, to meet some friends for a visit to the Casa de las Madres de la Plaza de Mayo. It was crowded as we all pushed ourselves through the entrance gates just in time for the arriving train. I was behind a short man holding a long sleeved shirt behind a woman. He seemed to be trying to hide what the woman in front of him was doing. She seemed to be tapping the side pocket of the man in front of her. I was taller than them all, (so I could see most of this.) The man, I assume was being pick pocketed, was oblivious. I just kept watching, somewhat in denial of what I was actually witnessing. Things seemed to move in slow motion as I thought: What are my options for trying to stop this, what would I want if I were being robbed, isn't it safer to just walk away? I hugged my timbuktu bag closer to my chest. Suddenly I found myself leaning over the suspicious couple and tapping the shoulder of the guy being robbed.He turned around, looking a bit agitated (after all, he didn't want to miss this train), the couple turned around and glared at me, 2 other people stared at me. "Oh crap", I thought! "What am I thinking" I just shrugged my shoulders and shook my hands as if to say, "oh, no...nothing, I didn't mean anything", turned away and walked along the platform. I passed several open doors of the train, but just couldn't enter any of them. I just didn't quite know what I was doing. My only thought was to walk away. As the train took off, more people filled the platform waiting for the next train. I looked down the platform. The suspicious couple didn't seem to get on the train either. All the more reason to think they were up to no good.
I'm still not sure if it was the right thing to do, but I wouldn't change a thing if I could do it all over again.
3 comments:
TOTALLY the right thing. Good Samaritan.
Wow, that is crazy. I too think you did the right thing. All it cost him was the energy to turn around, and had he been more forceful about it you could always have said that you thought he was someone you knew. It is crazy when you see these things. It actually kind of reminds me of that guy we saw in San Fransisco who dressed as the bush and scared the people who walked by (you know what i am talking about). He could have grabbed their money instead of scaring them. They were completely oblivious to the circle of people watching them, but at a distance it was obvious what was going to happen. Your story also reminds me of when I was in Paris with Uncle Billy and Pat and they were robbed on the subway. In that incident the couple robbing them dropped a watch on the ground and indictated as if to ask him to pick it up for them, when he bent down a person standing behind lifted his wallet. Luckily Uncle Billy realised what happened and was able to rough'em up Irish style. During the whole incident his wallet fell between the train and the platform. After the would be robbers fled, another Good Samaritan jumped onto the tracks and got his wallet for him. Thank God for people like you.
Yes, thank goodness for people like you. Just as you said, what would you want to happen if it was you being robbed. William's suggestion was good too, about thinking he was someone you knew. Keep your purse tight against you!!
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