It's Now Okay to Steal

Oklahoma is a state that prides itself as being the "Buckle of the Bible Belt" based on the number of huge churches which are filled every Wednesday night and most Sundays. The high moral ground occupied by all these Bible-thumpers has been a protection to the people of this state against all forces of nature and acts of God (except tornadoes, wild fires, ice storms, drought, and more tornadoes). This is a state that has constitutionally defined marriage and still allows the display of the 10 commandments in government buildings. That some of the commandments are scratched and faded should not imply that the rule of law is not held in the highest esteem and absolute honesty expected of all the ladies and gentlemen calling themselves residents of this great state. Unless it was someone else's mistake, and you're really just taking advantage... not stealing really, because you didn't actually take anything... and not lying, if nobody asks you any direct questions. After all, they have insurance to cover these sorts of things, and I've been ripped off a time or two, so it's just karma paying me back. I feel completely justified in my ability to rationalize.
The point of these ramblings can best be illustrated by a story I'd like to share:
We recently purchased new cell phones, the kind with a slot for a memory card so you can save songs and pictures on the phone. We ordered the memory cards online through Best Buy because that was cheaper than ordering the card through the phone company, or buying them in the store. We opted for free shipping rather than in-store pickup because it was free and we weren't planning on heading into that part of town anytime soon. Several days later (4 days longer than the "expected" ship date and at least 3 trips into that part of town) a large box arrived at our doorstep. Much larger than would be needed to ship two small memory cards. Opening the box revealed two Sony Cybershot digital cameras. Being the savvy consumers that we are we immediately kept the cameras and called to complain that we didn't get the memory cards. No, wait, that's what people thought we should have done. We took the cameras to the Best Buy (4th trip to that part of town) and exchanged them for the memory cards. The exchange went something like this:
Me: We ordered memory cards but got these cameras. Can I exchange them for the memory cards?
Customer service rep: (incredulously) You want to exchange them? I'd just keep the cameras.
Me: I didn't pay for cameras, and I don't really need another digital camera.
Customer service rep: Okay. (On radio to electrics manager) I need two micro memory cards for a customer who received two cameras by mistake.
Electronics manager: Why doesn't he keep the cameras?
Customer service rep: He says he doesn't need them and didn't pay for them.
Electronics manager: Okay, but I'd just keep them.
Customer service manager: What's going on here?
Customer service rep: This guy ordered two memory cards for like 40 bucks but got these two cameras which sell for like 300 bucks, and he wants to exchange them.
Customer service manger: Wow, I'd just keep them and buy new memory cards.
Customer service rep: Me too, but he wants to return them.
Customer service manger: Hmm, must believe in karma or something. (To me) Well, it pays to be honest, I guess, so we'll give you one of the memory cards free.
Me: (Somewhat happy and somewhat disgusted) Thanks.

Is it so rare for a person to be honest and not try to take advantage of someone's mistake that everyone at the store was shocked that I would bring in 300 dollars worth of merchandise to get my 40 dollar memory cards? I guess retail is a lot like politics, if you expect people to be dishonest, self-serving, and cheats, you'll get what you expected.

Scout Camp, and Why Dads are the Greatest

This last week I had the great privilege of accompanying the boys from our troop to Scout Camp. Located just outside the city of Talihina (Town Motto: Everything closes before 7!) Oklahoma. Of the adults who were able to attend with the troop I was in the unique position of being to only one without a son attending as well. Thus, I was able to observe the unique interactions between father and son outside the deeply entrenched patterns of the home.
Boys with involved fathers are more motivated to accomplish the various tasks assigned them at Scout Camp. This is not because Dad is yelling at them, or forcing them to do these things. The real motivator comes from the previous 12 to 16 years of Dad teaching them to do good things, and more importantly, working with them, and teaching them how to do good things well. When removed from the social settings of girls and friends from school, it is very easy to see the influence of good father in the life of their sons. Not every Dad was able to attend Scout Camp this week, but it didn't matter, their boys behaved the same as they would have if Dad had been there, because Dad has always been there at every crossroad of their lives.
My Dad was involved. I remember tagging along with him before I was Scout age, as he took the Scouts on various outings. I remember going to work with him when he was framing houses. We got to bring him tools and lumber, even though it would have been faster for him to get them himself. We got to eat lunch with him out of his lunch box. When we'd get bored, he'd nail together some scraps of lumber into the shape of an airplane, with spinning propeller, and we'd be set to play for hours. Dad was there at school sports. He watched the soccer team that never won a game. He sat in the classroom during three years of math relays. He couldn't always be at home, but whenever possible he took the family with him on business trips, to places like Coeur-d'-Alene, Washington D.C. and Orlando (I didn't go on that one, but the younger kids did).
As a kid it is rare to appreciate the true value of a great Dad. To me, he was just Dad. But when I started to associate with a lot of adults, who had known and worked with my Dad, and they took the time to let me know how impressed they've been by my Dad, and how lucky I am to have such a great guy for a father, I got the chance to reflect and see that they were right, and that I really did have a wonderful man for a father. Now that I'm older (not grown up) and have kids of my own, I can see even more clearly the great example of my Dad gave to me as a young boy at Scout Camp.