This Time of Year Is Not So Merry For Some

Shoshin1

On my jolk this morning, I saw an intoxicated young Maori woman approach two young couples who were setting up a sun shade tent on the beach , at first I thought the couples were also Maori, but when I got closer I saw that one of the women was wearing a Hijab and they looked Middle Eastern...

I couldn't quite hear the conversation the Maori woman was having with them, I just heard her greet them in a somewhat drunken friendly manner, then all of a sudden things turned nasty, the young woman started to angrily abuse them and took a swipe at one of the woman...

The two women in the group had to hold one of the guys back, as he stepped in to defend the women who was being attacked...

As I was approaching the group, the Maori woman left...I asked if the couples were okay, they seemed quite shaken up by the incident... They said they were okay and thanked me for asking...

And as I made my way up the same stairs to the road which the young Maori woman had walked up, I was hoping to have a friendly chat with her to calm her down, when a police car turned up, a young police officer got out of the car and approached the young woman and started to question her...

At first I though another person at the beach had seen the incident and called the police, but it turned out, someone had called the police because the intoxicated young woman had also stolen a pair of shoes from one of the houses on the beachfront...

She ended up taking the shoes off and giving them to the officer who gave them back to the person from the house where she had stolen them ...The owner of the shoes had been following the young woman...

It was such a sad thing to witness, a troubled and hurt young Maori woman lashing out at the world, the young Muslim couples who became the targets of her hurt and frustration and the Pakeha woman who had her shoes stolen now feeling a sense of guilty that the police had arrested the young Maori woman...

Sadly I think this may have been the same young Maori woman who came to our office last week, (I wasn't on duty at the time) because she had been sleeping rough on one of the beaches and a local good Samaritan who felt sorry for her told her to come to our office, we provide clients with the contact details of organisations who can help them...

She had just spent a year in rehab getting herself clean, hoping to reunite with her partner and children who live on the island, however her partner had not told her that during her time in rehab he had found a new partner and she had moved in with him and the children...and he no longer wanted anything to do with her....

Jeroen

Tough situation to be in… but getting drunk and stealing is not the way to get yourself out of it, it just leads to more trouble. Still if you’re so desperate that you have to steal shoes then things must be pretty bad.

lobster

Good and tragic example from #Shoshin.
I do not have to go far for examples:
A Muslim neighbour who collapsed and spent 5 months on her sister's couch recovering. My own sibling having to come to terms with and out of a very negative period.

Both have family, a home and capacity to change. Not everyone is so fortunate.

Then there is me, a completely hopeless case planning my first Pagan Curse ...