Tello, let's see if we can do something about this.
Full restitution of your wrongs may not be possible, but what basically can we hope to achieve?
1. Repayment of the loan;
2. Payment equal to the value of the wood which was stolen;
3. Anything else?
For the future, your generous nature is going to have to go to boot camp. (We'll all help.)
We will pummel you into never never never NEVER doing business with a friend - unless you are prepared to lose that friend AND the money.
(Or unless you have very high level trust in that friend's ethics.)
It is ALWAYS necessary to get things in writing when giving loans or contracts, or hiring someone to undertake an action for you (as in the firewood case).
If some people have decided you are a "soft touch", they will see that it is not the case. You have trusted people in the past - but that is how communities function.
We all trust each other - our fellow human beings - to an extent we probably don't consciously realize. If we didn't, human society would collapse.
I trust the bank not to spend the money deposited with them. They trust me to repay business loans. Ergo - trust.
Mind you, it's always wise to do background checks or have assurances of reliability...
The bank checked my history. They found me to be trustworthy. Therefore they had (and have) trust in me.
I knew the history of the bank. I know it's subject to regulations, otherwise it could not continue to operate. Based on the bank's history AND the regulations (which involves further trust), I trust the bank with my money.
So - trust is not the problem.
You trusted individuals; that is scarcely a crime.
(But in future, you will have learned to give your trust after some hard scrutiny only. When it comes to money, you have to be a strong tough negotiator. The time to place conditions and consequences upon funds is before you lend it.)
We can talk about ways to seek financial redress from those who have not dealt fairly after having been given your trust. You can afford to pity those people, because they have lost their integrity by their behaviour. You can "forgive" them too - but that has nothing to do with seeking and GETTING financial redress. Emotional/spiritual forgiveness does not mean forgiving the actual debt. But forgiveness is a moot point at this stage as we need to focus on your right to be repaid.
Those discussions will be carried out in the appropriate setting/venue so as to protect your rights and maximise your chance of success.
You don't need to be beating yourself up now for any decisions made... The past is done; we're focusing on your present outcomes, and berating oneself achieves nothing. Peace...
