A Brief Story on Perspective

You never know what someone’s going through.

I had a situation this weekend that I feel compelled to share with you. I learned a valuable lesson on Saturday.

I was driving with my kids in the back. They were in their car seats (they’re 2 and 3). We were near the town square, driving on a pretty busy road. There was a car in front of me about 30 yards. The speed limit was 35 (not fast) and there were oncoming cars about 150 yards away. The guy behind me sped up and passed me. As he cut me off getting back into our lane, he nearly caused a big time accident with the oncoming cars.

I honked my horn and raised my hands to let him know that what he did was crazy. I’m somewhat embarrassed to say this, but I followed this guy down the street as he pulled into his condo complex. I’ve never done anything like this before, but the fact that my kids were in the car triggered something in me that was out of the ordinary.

When I pulled up next to this guy, I simply told him that what he did was ignorant. He acted like it was no big deal and said I was driving too slowly. There were some intense words traded back and forth, as I asked him if it was really that big of a deal to get home 5 seconds faster.

I then asked him if he had kids, as my point was to show him why I was so angry (because my kids were in danger). At this point, this gentleman’s voice began to tremble and he was getting choked up. He proceeded to tell me that he and his wife had just found out they can’t have kids. He didn’t elaborate, but at that point my heart sank.

You see, I’m not disappointed in myself for confronting him, but it taught me a valuable lesson. You never know what someone else is going through. Maybe this guy had a bout of anger as he was driving and he decided to pass me. I’m not condoning what he did, but I felt really bad about what he was going through. I told him that I’d have him and his wife in my thoughts and prayers. In a weird way, we had a connection. He apologized and I did as well.

Next time you find yourself confronting someone, remember that they may be going through something traumatic in their life. You just never know. This experience has made me appreciate my kids that much more. I’m reminded that having children is not a right, it’s an amazing blessing.