Name: Berlin Goh Man Ning, 4I (2) 12/2/2013

I silently watched him closely as I covered my mouth with sweaty palms, attempting to keep as quiet as possible. His shoulders tensed as he nimbly inched towards the shelves of expensive-looking perfumes. I watched him heave a sigh of relief when he knew that nobody noticed him. Of course, being where I was, it was hard for him to notice me, the silent observer. I recognised him from the scar on the left side of his face and the messy, tousled hair that looked unkempt and dry. He resembled a mousy-looking, scrawny beggar. What was once a good-looking, groomed gentleman had become someone who looked as if he had aged over ten years.

Beads of sweat trickled down the back of his neck as he wet his charred lips nervously. With gritted teeth, he fidgeted with the zip on his bag. He gingerly hoisted the open bag on his lap and with clumsy fingers, started to stuff those bottles in his bag. I let out a small squeal as I began to grasp the situation. What he was doing was illegal! My eyes widened with horror. It was not the act of shoplifting that disgusted me; but his actions that disappointed me greatly. Uncle. I muttered under my breath.

This incident took place when I was twelve. I remembered vaguely that it was probably that year when Uncles wife passed away. As much as I had wanted to stop him right there and then, part of me wanted to observe him further and also for Uncle to regret his actions and turn back. I hoped for him to stop and reconsider but that does not seem to happen. Tears prickled in my eyes. My uncles actions irked me as I watched him hurriedly stuff boxes of items into his bag. His bag began to look like a huge bulge and I finally decided to do what deemed right.

I held my breath and boldly approached him cautiously from behind. I put on the best smile I ever had and pretended to be oblivious of everything. With trembling fingers, I tapped his shoulder gently. Startled, he whirled around and stared at me with wide eyes. His brow furrowed, his face flushed and he started to explain. I.I.you see, this..

I whispered to him, Uncle, put everything back, it is not too late. I smiled encouragingly at him. However, his reaction was far from what I had expected. He breathed, Noit is wrong.you should not even see this. He hastily took a step back. That was a wrong move. The products that were lined up neatly on the shelves fell to the ground with a loud clatter. His bag, full of items gave way and goods started to strewn across the marbled floor.

Many heads turned to our direction as I stood there gaping. My uncle was petrified stiff. The crowd that had gathered started to whisper among themselves, pointing fingers at the bag that Uncle was now clutching tightly to his chest. He ran his hand through his dishevelled hair. His haggard face now plastered with a look of worry.

You there! From a distance, I spotted the big burly policeman stomping towards us. This spelled trouble. I started to tug on Uncles arm, hinting to him that we should leave but he just remained where he was. His big palms enveloped my small shaking hand. With tears in his eyes, he apologised profusely to me. He told me that shoplifting was irrational, it was the only way to let off steam, and He really missed Auntie very much.

As I stood there, looking at the cuffs around his wrists, I felt an ache in my heart that was unexplainable. Perhaps, this was my sympathetic feeling towards my uncle. He was clearly under a lot of stress. Just when I was about to turn, I spotted some items that touched my heart. Among the stolen items was a pendant similar to my Aunts, a bright red scarf that she once owned and her favourite Chanel floral perfume. Even at the age of twelve, I could understand the love uncle had for his wife. He shoplifted but with his wife in mind. He loved her too much and was devastated hence his actions.

I would like to tell him this, Uncle, once you have been released, please tell me more about auntie. This incident of shoplifting certainly taught me a lot of things in life. Everyone can say that shoplifting is bad, the culprit should be punished but some do have a reason to do so. We must help more of these people instead of stereotyping them in the category of bad eggs. Uncle, I love you and I always will.