Learning experiences happen to us throughout our lives.Not long ago,I had one that I would like to share.
I was going to Marblehead with my sailboat team.The team was racing down the highway at 85mph when we realized we were hungry .Luckily,we saw a rest area ahead.I had a brand-new $20 bill.I was so excited because I had never had that kind of cash before.But spending it on food
seemed like throwing it away.We all rushed into the pizza line.Finally I got a pizza and a drink,and walked to my table.About halfway through the meal,I realized I had not actually handed any money to the cashier.I had just walked out,and nobody had noticed.I felt terrible.
My conscience opened its mouth and swallowed me in one big bite.I couldn't get over it.I just couldn't go back to the cashier and pay for my stolen pizza.I was so upset that I refused to give myself the pleasure of an ice cream in fear that someone would say,“Hey,Jeff,why don’t you use the change from the pizza instead of the nice,new $20 bill?”I was not so proud of my cash now.
For the next two years,whenever I was reminded of the “pizza incident”,I would say to myself,“Don't think about it…”
I have learned two things from this experience .Maybe I was a fool for giving in to my conscience,and being too stupid to appreciate a free pizza.But the real lesson is that even if you get away from what you have done,your conscience will catch up with you.
This reflects the saying,“As coward(懦夫) dies a thousand deaths,a hero dies one.”I was a coward and have felt terrible about that incident at least a thousand times.If I had been a “hero” and gone back to pay for the pizza,I would have few a little uncomfortable about it only once,or maybe twice.