When the news flash reported that Paris Hilton was the victim of a jewellery theft a few weeks ago, many felt little sorrow for the pretty young heiress.
"She can afford it," a handful of cynics stated matter-of-fact without batting an eyelash.
Others quipped the obvious.
"She probably has insurance to cover the loss."
Even still, it is a hurtful experience to be a "victim" of a crime like that.
In this instant case, the heist may have been an inside job, for example.
Imagine that, friends and confidants - employees perhaps - at-the-ready to rip her off.
That's when a thief's rationale comes into play.
"She's careless with her possessions. Flits about. Flaunts her wealth and makes a vulgar display of it while the less fortunate are starving in the world. She deserves it."
Nonetheless, even the filthy rich occasionally have a possession or two that has sentimental value that it hurts to lose on such a nasty unpredictable occasion.
Frankly, I empathized with her.
Last year, employees at Kitsilano Storage in Vancouver (B.C.) seized an opportunity to steal a number of my personal possessions - antiques, personal papers, and clothing - for example.
Although my Buddhist teachings taught me not to "cling" to possessions and to rid myself of burning desires to obtain inanimate objects of monetary value, the theft stung because a couple of the items were of great personal value to me.
My father's violin, for instance, with a hand-painted portrait of his girlfriend (a pretty babe he dated before he met my Mother) was priceless to me.
And, certainly cannot be replaced by any stretch of the imagination.
Personal notes from screen legends Mary Martin & Elizabeth Taylor - which I cherished for years - were lifted also.
Vanished into thin air!
A whole series of paintings I framed in anticipation of a one-man exhibition were also stolen.
Sadly, few of the original pieces were signed or properly identified, so it is doubtful they'll ever be returned to me.
Bottom line, it shocks the sensibilities that employees at Kitsilano Storage (York Street location) would have the audacity to break the trust I placed in them by virtue of our client/business relationship - and ultimately - heartlessly make off with the few possessions in the world that I worked hard to accumulate over the years.
It's in God's hands now as I attempt to heal.
In closing, I part with a few insightful thoughts from Balthazar Gerbier, who once opined:
"Too many stairs and back doors make thieves and whores."
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