I was having such a good day. I was writing my sermon. I was in the flow. Terry asked me for the number to Geek Squad and I just quickly googled and got back to my sermon. With all the scammers out there, never google quickly! I had given him a look-alike Geek Squad number and in a matter of minutes all kinds of information was in the hands of a scammer.
As soon as we realized it was a scammer, we began the process of damage control. The folks at USAA were very helpful. Our local banker recommended I freeze our credit on the three credit reporting agencies, which I did. Our LifeLock put a fraud alert on our account. All charges that were made on our account were credited back to us.
So I sought to focus on all the people who had been kind and helpful in the midst of a frightening situation. I thought of all the difficulties we had survived over the years. Following the practice I put in place when we were defrauded by our business manager in our counseling business, I prayed for the scammer. I prayed primarily to keep myself from staying agitated or getting bitter. But I admit I also prayed he might find a better line of work.
Despite still feeling rather ragged and a little “edgy,” I decided to attempt achieving a repair on my phone. For a couple of weeks I had been navigating a maze trying accomplish this repair. I had been given incorrect information and sent first one place and then another. Directed by Spectrum to Geek Squad at Best Buy, I mentioned to the employee that we had already been through a scam this week. He said the previous week a woman brought in her computer, unaware she had been scammed until he checked her device. She had lost $1800 that couldn’t be recovered. We were not alone in this misfortune. (Always good to remember that whatever “stew” you are in, others have been there, too. They might even be there at this very moment.)
Awaiting Geek Squad to back up my phone, I felt emotionally washed out. Terry said something very funny and I burst out laughing. What great medicine laughter is! I felt immediate relief.
Driving home from Best Buy, we stopped at a favorite ice cream spot and treated ourselves. I considered that good medicine too!
May we be bearers of hope, the “wait staff” of Hope’s Café for each other and all those we encounter. Shalom, Kate
Hope’s Café Bonus: Falling into a sense of victimhood is a trap. Find a way to rise above it. “Self-Care is how you take your power back.” Developgoodhabits.com
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