The Open Mailbox
On Monday evening around 6:45 p.m., Jordan stopped by the mailboxes in the lobby of his apartment building. Most residents check their mail earlier in the day, so the area was quiet. When Jordan reached his box, he noticed it was slightly open.
This immediately felt strange. Jordan is careful with routine things. He checks his mail every day at the same time and always closes the mailbox firmly because the lock is loose. He remembered hearing it click when he closed it the day before.
Inside, the mail was neatly stacked. Nothing was missing. However, one envelope was turned upside down, facing the back of the box instead of the front. Jordan was certain he hadn’t placed it that way.
Across from the mailboxes is a small table where packages are sometimes left. A delivery slip sat there with Jordan’s apartment number written on it, but no package was in sight.
Jordan’s neighbor, Emily, often collects packages for people when they’re not home. She has done this for Jordan before, always letting him know afterward. She is friendly and organized, but she tends to assume help is welcome.
Earlier that afternoon, Jordan had received a message from the building manager reminding residents not to leave packages unattended in the lobby. The message was sent to everyone.
Later that evening, Emily mentioned casually that there had been “a lot of delivery activity” in the building that day and that things had been “a little confusing.”
Standing in front of the mailbox, Jordan tried to decide whether someone had opened his box by mistake, whether they were trying to help—or whether something else had happened entirely.
DISCUSSION PROMPTS
What do you think happened?
Do you think someone opened Jordan’s mailbox?
What are you basing that on?
Which detail feels most important?
Why does the upside-down envelope matter?
Why does the delivery slip matter?
Why might Emily be involved?
Why might she not be?
What assumption are you making?
Which detail feels normal?
What information is missing?
What would you ask Jordan?
What would you ask Emily?
How could this situation have an innocent explanation?
What would change your conclusion?
