I saw something bad happen and didn;t do anything about it?

Question

last night, at around 5pm, i was walking back back home after school athletics training. i was feeling tired and groggy after a long day and i wasnt up for much. i was sitting on the tram minding listening to my ipod when i saw this 60 something old lady clamber on to the tram. she was carrying all these shopping bags and looked like she was having a tough time.

so 20 minutes went by and still, she and i were the only 2 on the tram until about 4 stops before i had to get off, these 2 guys from a school i didnt know, got on and took seats next to the lady. these guys were about my age ( 16 ) and were having a long conversation about what they did on the weekend. i didnt hear all of it, but i often heard works like F*CK or SH*T.

so i took my earphones out and looked over at where they were sitting. the old lady in between the two of them was very uncomfortable at this stage and i felt that i should've said something. but before i could open my mouth, she opened hers.

she said. "excuse me, could you perhaps tone it down a bit?"

in a very quite voice that i could barely hear

and one of the two boys said " shut it okay? we were having a conversation!?" and then just as the tram stopped to let them off, one of the two, grabbed the ladys shopping bags and ran off the tram.

it was pandemonium, there was a crying old lady, traffic all around us and all sorts of stuff. i still had all my athlectics gear on and i could just have easily got off and chased them to get the bags back. but becuase i had already served 3 two hour detentions for punching a kid in the face for taking my best mates ruler and snapping it and i was feeling tired, i didnt do anything. i spent the rest of the trip with my head in my hands wondering if i should of done something.

i dont know, i feel bad becuase it was out of self preseravtion that i didnt do anything about the situation. i told the tram driver what had happened and tried to comfort the lady, but i still felt that i couldve done more.

help me get my thoughts straight please?

Answer 1

I think there’s no need to beat yourself up over the incident. The fact is the boys’ surprise attack was swift and unexpected. It took sometime for the others on the scene, especially you, to grasp what was going on. And not being trained for the situation, you were at a loss about how to respond, and hence didn’t/couldn’t intervene.

It’s very possible that the boys had already planned to rob the old lady in the empty car, so they sat on either side of her, and acted as they did. They’d probably practised their moves, and might’ve got away even if you’d chased after them.

You feel bad in hindsight, but remember, bystanders usually are somewhat tuned out of their immediate surroundings – like an idling car. It takes sometime to get into gear to take off. Perhaps the lesson for you from the situation is to be more alert while you travel. Perhaps you might also train in dealing with the unexpected. That’s what being street-smart is all about.

Answer 2

Don't feel bad, self preservation is completely natural in humans. Also is the desire to protect. If you had interfered something even more terrible could have happened, they may have had a gun or knife.

Let the authorities deal with finding them, it's what you pay them for.