Wednesday, October 19, 2022

A Sin of Inaction

Today, I missed an opportunity to do good. I was at a KFC, eating lunch, and a lady came up to the counter. She asked about job applications, and then she asked about the price of a single piece of chicken. Upon being told the price, she seemed surprised and disappointed, and then she left.

I almost stopped her. She was clearly in some sort of need. Perhaps she wasn't desperate, but she certainly seemed like she could use a hand and/or a free meal. I should have bought her some chicken, or at least should have offered to.

I wonder how this inaction on my part will be measured, morally. It probably wasn't an evil act, if for no other reason than the fact that it was no act at all. Still, that's not an excuse. Sins of omission are still sins. Is that what this was? It would have been good for me to offer help. Was it bad of me not to?

I don't know if my inaction was morally evil, but it was almost certainly "bad," if only in that it was a missed opportunity to do good. I'll try to do better next time, in that I'll try to do something at all. 

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