The Wandering Trolley

I was lucky enough today to park next to a trolley return bay at the shops. Subsequently I returned my trolley and actually felt quite good about it; not arrogant, or snobbish, but warm and fuzzy. It got me thinking... (See what having your own blog makes you do!)

I very rarely hand my trolley back into the trolley return bay. Why? Because I don't feel that I have to. Let's take a closer look at this process. There are three sections to this process; borrowing a trolley, returning the trolley, and complications. Let me explain.

1. Borrowing a trolley

When you shop in a major shopping chain, you are usually presented with the privilege of borrowing a trolley in which you can place the items you wish to purchase. This is usually a privilege that goes un-thanked. Have you ever thanked the check out operator for letting you use one of the trolleys that supermarket chain has purchased? No of course you haven't. (Although, this could be a fun thing to do next shopping trip.)

If you didn't have a trolley, you wouldn't be able to shop in relative comfort and in fact you would be faced with the very real dilemma of not being able to purchase everything that you want. This is a negative reality for both the company and the consumer.

a) Company - if you cannot fill a trolley, you cannot purchase a trolley's worth of stuff. The trolley well and truly pays for itself in a very short period of time.

b) Consumer - if you can only purchase what you can fit in your arms or in a self-purchased trolley you will either have less money in your pocket, or less time in your day (have to visit the shops more regularly).

So the company cannot say, 'It's the consumer who demands the trolley,' and the consumer cannot say, 'The company is responsible for providing trolleys'.

2. Returning the trolley

When you arrive back at your car and empty the contents of your trolley you are then faced with the decision of returning your trolley... 'To return, or not to return.'

As far as I'm concerned you have a responsibility to return your trolley if you:

a) are parked next to a trolley bay;
b) don't have kids and are parked a short distance to a trolley bay (20 metres);
c) cannot place the trolley anywhere where it won't run into another car.

3. Complications

The major complication in this morality-buster is that of the trolley boys. Obviously the major shopping centres have realized that people were not doing the 'right thing' and putting their trolley in the returning stations and have hired people to do just this. They obviously have money to spare and feel that this is a service they can provide to the consumer to keep them coming back.

Therefore if we leave our trolleys in our car space (or nearby); knowing with comfort that it's keeping the trolley boys in business (and fit), and fulfilling the management's desire to keep you returning, then technically you are doing the right thing.


But then I remember that Jesus tells us to go the extra mile.

Whether that includes those extra metres to drop the trolley in the trolley bay... well I suppose it does.

Josh