Lost & Found

I did the most epic good deed* yesterday, at this UPS store.

One of our friends was on an airplane and found a Kindle left by the person who was in the seat before her. My friend took it with her and called Amazon when she got home, trying to find the rightful owner. Amazon gave her the run around, so her husband called back and got someone who promised to send him a package so he could ship the Kindle to Amazon. Then Amazon would get it back to the owner. Our friends never received the package, even after months went by.

In mid-September, my friends brought the Kindle to me and asked if I wanted it. I said YES! That would be fantastic! So I kept the Kindle and couldn’t wait to use it once I finished a novel I had borrowed from the library. Even better? There was a book already on the Kindle that I had been wanting to read. So I finished the paper book and jumped into the Kindle book. But as I read, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this Kindle should NOT be mine. I should at least make the same effort that my friends did in trying to return it. So once I finished the book I was reading on the Kindle (I AM selfish after all, and had to read the book!), I contacted Amazon and they emailed me a pre-paid shipping label so I could send it back to them.

I think I was hoping that when I contacted Amazon, a miracle would occur and they might say I didn’t need to return it. Aw, darn. No such luck.

So yesterday, Jackson and I stopped by the UPS store and shipped the Kindle to Amazon. I put a note for the owner inside the Kindle case, asking him/her to email me when it returns home so I know it is safe and sound. I really hope it gets back to its owner, because sending it away really tested my willpower. What if it doesn’t, and I could have just kept it? Ugh. That would stink! But at least I know I did the right thing and my conscience is clear. One day, I hope my kids read this blog and realize even adults have a hard time doing the right thing.

This story should serve as a good reminder to us all: ALWAYS label your expensive electronic items with your name and address! If the Kindle owner had just kept her business card in the pocket of the carrying case, my friends would have mailed it directly back to her. (And I wouldn’t be torn between my good and evil sides!)

*Now don’t go giving me a pat on the back for my good deed. If I were really deserving of it, I wouldn’t have read an entire book on the Kindle before I returned it. I would have contacted Amazon immediately instead of selfishly reading and telling myself, “Finders, keepers; losers, weepers.” Yuck. Sometimes I amaze even myself with my pettiness!