Do you leave the toilet paper roll empty when it runs out?

Hello everyone.
This is Itsuki, who has once again won the cold battle against the snow today.

Some of you who have read my other articles might already know this, but
I work in cleaning.

Perhaps because of my profession,
I frequently encounter toilet paper holders that have been used up and are empty.

I see this quite often, not just at work, but also at shops and leisure facilities I visit.

Of course, there are cases where

it was just an accident, like being in a hurry and forgetting!

I think some are just coincidental.

Maybe I've even done that myself in the past?

However, although they are in the minority, there are some people who
seem to leave it that way consciously.

There are cases where the lid of the empty holder is left up,
showing a sense of kindness in letting the next person know it's empty,

and cases where a game of chicken was clearly played until the very last sheet ran out.

There are even cases where someone takes a new roll from the stock, uses it, and then leaves it on the floor instead of putting it in the holder.

If you've gone that far, you're almost there.
Wouldn't it be fine to just refill the holder?
I sometimes think that, or maybe I don't, or actually, I do (laughs).

Since I was a child, it has been natural for me to replace the toilet paper if it runs out, whether at home or out in public, and I have never questioned it.
If I use the last of the stock, I notify the staff.

Because, if I were to finish my business and realize there was no paper left, without having noticed that the supply was low and there was no stock...
Just imagining that is a tragedy.
I couldn't put the next person through that (laughs).

So, when I first realized that there were people who would leave it empty, it was quite a culture shock.

Because of that, in the past, I even tried to reason out why people would leave the toilet paper empty like that
(I know, I have too much free time).

Maybe they think public toilets or the toilet paper there is dirty and don't want to touch it?

Or,

maybe they think it's something the cleaning staff or shop employees should do?

Or,

maybe they have never done it before and don't know how to replace
the toilet paper?

Or,

Do people like that leave it to others to restock even at home?
Or is it only when they are out?

And so on.

Once, while chatting with someone I was cleaning with, I asked why this happens.

They gave me a powerful answer that showed they had seen it all: 'There are people like that everywhere in every era, so if you let it bother you, there's no end to it!'

That answer made me feel like they had experienced both the bitter and the sweet of life.

Since then, I haven't really let it bother me, and I just think 'Oh, here we go again' while I do the restocking.

However, since I have this place called note where I can share my own thoughts.

While I am fully aware that there are many different ways of thinking, I decided to write this as my own personal opinion.

I thought it might be okay to have an article like this that passionately discusses toilet matters once in a while.
So, I decided to give it a try.

I will be talking about toilets from here on out, so

if you think, 'I don't want toilets popping into my head!!'

please turn back now.

First of all, when I see an empty toilet paper holder, what I feel is

loneliness or disappointment.

It's a very faint feeling, but that is what I feel.

It's not at all because it adds to my workload as a cleaner,
or anything like that.

It's just that if someone leaves the toilet paper empty,
the next person who enters will have to replace it.

If that person is a cleaner or a staff member, that's perfectly fine.
Because it's their job.

But,
if it's at work, it's a colleague,
if it's at a shop, it's another customer in the same position,
and if it's at home, it's family.

Surely, that person
would feel a little bit of stress if they entered a toilet and there was no paper, wouldn't they?

If I were a wife, that would be a reason to lose my temper.

In fact,
there are places that have signs up saying,
'Please restock the toilet paper when you use it all up.'

Surely.
They don't want to have to say it, but if they don't, the people who don't replace it will never change.
The daily little stresses won't go away.
Isn't that sign the result of someone's small SOS after much internal conflict?

Which is often found in shop toilets and the like,

"Thank you for always keeping this place clean"

That is also one of them.

Itsuki feels the kindness and the SOS in that roundabout, gentle phrasing—the feeling that even if they themselves have been made to feel uncomfortable, they do not want to make others feel the same way. That is the consideration and the cry for help from such kind people.

If something runs out, replenish it.

If you borrow something, use it cleanly.

I wish that signs born from someone's SOS, asking for such obvious things, would never have to be created anywhere.

Because I am a customer of the shop

Because I am paying for the service

Because I work outside the home

Itsuki's feelings of loneliness or disappointment mentioned at the beginning,

I think it is because, deep inside the empty paper holder, I unknowingly felt those kinds of sentiments.

When you use up the toilet paper, please be sure to replenish it for the next person! You might be able to reduce someone's minor stress by one.

Conversely, there are people who fold the toilet paper into a triangle when they leave the restroom. Tidying up the space you used before leaving. So that the next person can easily find the end of the paper.

So that the next person can use it comfortably.

It makes me happy to feel such kind intentions. There are various theories, but the triangle fold is originally considered a signal from cleaning staff to indicate that cleaning is complete. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some people do not approve of triangle folds by anyone other than cleaning staff for hygiene reasons, so this is by no means a suggestion to do so.

However, I think the richness of heart of a person who can act with the next person in mind when no one is watching is truly wonderful. I love that kind heart of yours!

The restroom is a completely private space, and there are no eyes on you. That is precisely why I think it is a space where a person's true self is easily revealed.

No matter how important a person is outside,

No matter how wonderful someone's appearance is,

If they become self-centered in such an unseen space, I think that is a pity. I think that a person who can act with the next user in mind, even in a space where they are not seen by others, is wonderful, and I want to be that kind of person myself. Not limited to the restroom, even in a space where there are no eyes on you, your own eyes are there.

I see you acting with consideration for the next person, even when no one is watching.

Seeing that makes me like myself more and feel a sense of kindness.
I believe that also leads to richness of heart.

#HowIFeelRightNow

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