it was the late 70’s, and chuck mangione’s instrumental “feel so good” was on the radio. it was a special jazz song played with a unique instrument, the flugelhorn. as a high school jazz trumpet player, i dreamed of getting a flugelhorn just like mr. mangione’s. i was able buy a used horn. it was a nice silver and with a dent. for me, it cost a lot of money: a couple hundred dollars.
i took it to school to play in jazz band. after practice, we would leave our instruments in a room. within two days, it was stolen. it was never to be seen again. i suspected that it was a classmates who did it. the theft changed my views of others. i felt betrayed by my peers. i became fearful of carrying around expensive items.
recently, ny city made headlines when a masked man stole an e-scooter from 6-year-old brooklyn boy. the e-scooter, valued at $500.00, was his special need brother’s. the man approached the boy, pushed him off the scooter, grabbed it and drove off. nypost.
it is reported that “the boy, a second-grader who turns 7 next week, is so traumatized about what happened that he hasn’t been to school since and is terrified of ever riding a scooter again, his dad added. “we are working on it,” the father said. “we are going to have therapy for him, for sure. we are not going to let him fall behind.” nypost.com
there are many lessons to be learned from this story. first, parents must live in the real world. they should never let children handle expensive or valuable items in public without parental supervision. second, individuals must appreciate that valuable items are always at risk for theft in the public. thus, if the item that precious, it is best to not take it out. third, a theft can and will have a lifetime effect on children. their perception of being safe will change. their perception of strangers will change. while innocence may be lost, survival skills may be learned.
be well!!
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