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11:33:00 o'clock BST
Oxfam Retreat
Cool Cat, Notting Hill
You could have problems in the shop. Oxfam sold tea and coffee and honey along with many other articles under the section that it called Fair-Trading. These items were purchased from different parts of the world and were an attempt for the growers in poorer countries to be paid a fair price for their labour. A woman walked into the shop with a jar of Oxfam honey that she had bought and said she was not satisfied with the purchase. She had tried it on her toast in the mornings and did not like it and had made a cake with more of it and it was not a success. There was less than half the honey left in the jar but she was insisting on a full refund. Normally I would have agreed and it was probably shop policy to keep the customers happy at all costs but her demanding and unreasonable approach stirred my stubbornness and I refused her request. The shop was busy at the time and she took the opportunity to take me apart piece by piece and saw in me all the characteristics that I saw in her of being power mad and arrogant.
She was erudite and continued to harangue for what seemed like forever but I stood my ground and gave her the name of my line manager that she demanded. It was a bruising battle and I retreated downstairs for a reviving cup of tea but on reflection if she had of come in the next time she could have had all the honey in the Gambia rain forests.
Chris, the shop manager, was moving on to a higher managerial position and they wanted somebody to oversee the shop until a new manager was appointed. As I was already looking after the duty roster and was trained in cashing up at the end of the day and was now familiar with the running of the shop, Chris asked me if I would take on the extra responsibility. Running the shop was a different matter than being a volunteer for although there were good systems in place and most of the volunteers were helpful and co-operative there was a small number who could be difficult.
I did not go out of my way to impose my authority but by the nature of things I had to get the job done. I had an Irish temperament of being quick to let fly if I felt offended and you had to have oceans of calm and self control to deal with some aspects of the volunteer character. You had to be part counsellor and part therapist and part magician to handle their sensitivity and some of them were going through periods of change in their lives or were rehabilitating from mental or emotional stress. I could be very patient and understanding and would listen for what seemed like hours to the minute outpourings of people’s lives but it was all beginning to chip at my own equilibrium and I started to get wound up myself.
It all came to a head over the pricing of some bric a brac and I argued with a volunteer over our different valuations. This was the straw that tipped the balance and I realised that the whole business was getting to be more than it was worth and it was time for the walk down the road to new horizons. It had been an illuminating experience and I treasure the people whom I had met and lived with their dreams for a while.
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You cannot please everyone all the time. I have come across people like that woman. What came into my mind "And is there honey still for tea?" An interesting piece to read, as usual Liam.
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I heard once that the qualities you find yourself hating about other people are those that you see of yourself.
Makes sense, sometimes.
19/08/04 09:30