It’s a strange day today, it is.
I set out to accept a rights shares issue for a stock we owned. Since the rights shares acceptance document required a RM10 revenue stamp as well as payment for the lots by Banker’s Draft or Money Order, it seemed logical to get both the revenue stamp and Money Order from the Post Office, rather than get a Banker’s Draft from the bank and then get the revenue stamp from the Post Office.
Skipped 62 positions! Then karma took over.
I arrived at the Post Office just after 10.30am and took my queue number. Good grief! My number was 3185 and they were currently serving only 3025. That’s 160 positions down the queue! Never mind, I was in high spirit and I settled down to wait patiently. However, by 12 noon, the number called was only 3110. Then I noticed that quite a number of people couldn’t wait and had left, so that quite a few numbers were blown. That’s when a light bulb lit up in my head and I started paying attention to the calling pattern. 3116- counter 6! 3116- counter 6! Two times. No taker. Next number. 3117- counter 6! 3117- counter 6! Again, no taker. And so it went on, until someone claimed a position. 3122- counter 6! 3122- counter 6! No-one. 3123- counter 6! I stepped to the counter confidently, and got served! Great! Skipped 62 positions! Then karma took over.
“Intgerity is doing the right thing even when no-one is watching”.
Now, many of us ( and all Politicians ) mouth the word, “Integrity”, but how many of us really know what it means? It was my son, way back when he was in Primary 6, who told his mum and dad that his teacher taught him that “Intgerity is doing the right thing even when no-one is watching”.
Wow! The sheer simplicity of the definition belies the profoundness of that idea.
So it is clear that my personal integrity was lost this morning at the Post Office. And what was my karmic consequence?
“Sorry sir, the server has problem and I cannot process the money order application”.
“Sorry sir, the server has problem and I cannot process the money order application”. Can you beat that? After I was smirking and congratulating myself for jumping 62 positions, and after standing at the counter twiddling my thumbs for 10 minutes, the counter clerk told me she’s getting errors from the server and cannot proceed. Can I come back later in the afternoon, she asked.
OK, no problem, my high-spirit was still largely intact even though it was dampened slightly. Never mind, go and take my lunch and return later. And that’s what I did. Upon reaching home,
I received a SMS from my son which mentioned a potential disaster.
I received a SMS from my son which mentioned a potential disaster. Another setback. Stay cool. After lunch, I prepared to go back to the Post Office. As I opened the car-door, the alarm went off. I slammed shut the car-door and turned off the alarm. Then clicked the remote to unlock the
And no matter how many times I clicked the remote to set/reset the lock/alarm, the red light remained ON.
door, but I noticed the car alarm red indicator lamp was still ON. And no matter how many times I clicked the remote to set/reset the lock/alarm, the red light remained ON. That would mean the alarm is primed and will sound if I open the car door. Gosh! Yet another setback! I finally broke out of my paralysis and yanked open the car door, despite the red alarm indicator lamp. No alarm sounded. What the…..??? Started the car engine and the alarm light went off. Strange indeed!
From 10.30am to 3.30pm, and I still couldn’t get my Money Order.
I arrived back at the Post Office at 3.00pm and looked for the counter clerk because she told me that I need not queue again; just to go straight to her. She was not at her seat. Her colleague said she was on tea-break and will be back at 3.30pm. Ouch! Another long wait. Finally she returned and I promptly went to her, but she said the server was still down. Grrrrrr! From 10.30am to 3.30pm, and I still couldn’t get my Money Order. No choice but to walk some distance away to the nearest CIMB Bank branch to get my Banker’s Draft, instead. That warrants another story, another time. Finally got my Banker’s Draft and went back to the Post Office to post the rights shares application letter at 4.30pm.
So boys and girls, remember the moral of this story and never compromise your integrity. ‘Nuf said?
By the way, when I reached home, I received another SMS from my son to say that the earlier potential disaster was a false alarm. Be grateful for small blessings! Looks like my karmic reaction to the momentary lapse in my integrity has run its course…for now.
Just mere coincident the server at the post office is down. Nothing to do with integrity and queue jumping. Must be your guilty conscience bothering you.
Yes, it could be a mere coincidence that the server was down. Yes, it was probably my guilty feelings. But it sure makes for a good story and moral lesson for the young ‘uns, right? Something like our childhood moral lessons and anecdotes, which probably sprung from similar stories told by the sages of old.
But after all that is said and done, I subscribe to the cause-and-effect nature of the Universe. Call it karma or whatever.
The Moral Guardians will have nothing to guard if we humans don’t have these lapses once in a while…..
Statistically this is part of the normal distribution curve….
The act of jumping queue is so out of character with me that psychological or not, the karmic effect seemed so immediate and felt so real to me.