Despite what we may think, we never truly know what other people are going through.
It’s a normal part of human nature to make assumptions about others when we have incomplete information. Still, we get into trouble when we think we know people’s stories before we actually interact with them. More importantly, we shouldn’t think we know how to tell other people how to live their lives, even if our intentions are good.
That’s what happened in one story out of Kentucky.
Lexi Baskin had parked her car in a handicapped space and went into the store like any other day.
When she came out, however, she had a nasty surprise for her in store. Approaching her car, she saw that it was covered with papers and had a longer note on the front making accusations. The note read:
“Shame on you! There are legit handicapped people who need this parking space. We have seen you and your friend come and go and there is nothing handicapped about either of you. Your tag must be borrowed or fake. We will make every effort to see you fined or towed for being such a selfish, terrible person.”
The only, catch, however, was that Baskin was completely right to park where she’d parked.
The truth is that Baskin had been undergoing radiation treatment for grade 2 ependymoma on her brain stem, a serious ailment. As a result of her treatment, Baskin would often get dizzy or disoriented and had a handicapped tag to make her life slightly easier. The experience was upsetting and led to her to post a message online about it:
“This is my car and I am legally allowed to park in handicap spaces due to cancer treatment and exhaustion. Just because you can’t physically observe something does not mean that a person is not feeling it . . . I have about a week and a half left of treatment and my last scan came back good. I’m left with a little speech impediment but it’s improving.”
Through it all though, Baskin tried to remain graceful and to use the experience as a teaching moment.
For anyone who read her story, Baskin wanted them to know that the moment contained an important lesson:
“I am not asking for sympathy, but just awareness that everyone is fighting their own battles, whether you know it or not. Be kind to people. Make people cry tears of joy, and not frustration or sadness. Love one another. I will choose to love this person and pray for them. I hope that the darkness in their heart is replaced with unconditional love and happiness.”
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