Oh gross, that is so disgusting! As I sat in the lane trying to enter the airport parking garage, the car in front of me was stopped while the lady in front had her door open tossing her cookies. Couldn’t she have waited until she got inside and not made the rest of us nauseated, I thought to myself? Thanks lady, thanks a lot. That’s just what I wanted to see this morning.
My morning continued. I’m almost to the TSA security podium and I can’t locate my boarding pass. “Next,” calls the TSA agent whose name tag read TED. I’m frantically searching through my briefcase, my pockets, the ground…. “NEXT,” he calls again a little more emphatically! Finally, I find it and step to the podium. The agent gives me this look that says,…. you, mr. business, are what’s wrong with this world. In fact, he gave me a lecture on being prepared and how my actions have delayed the entire process. I walk away thinking, “what a jerk.” I pitied the poor family that had to live with a crusty sack like that. After the scanner gave the green light that I had not ingested a bomb device, I picked up my belongings. As I did so, I overheard one TSA agent asking the other if they had heard about Ted’s house being foreclosed. The other agent commented that he had and that Ted’s entire family was now having to live with relatives. I thought to myself, that could explain Ted’s scowl this morning and that maybe, just maybe, I should cut him some slack.
My day continues. Finally, I’m boarding the plane and guess who I get to sit beside… you guessed it,.. “The Cookie Tosser” from earlier this morning. The gaunt and frail lady and her husband were seated in the center and window seats and I was on the aisle. I sat down , thinking that I had the worst luck in the world b/c I had to sit beside her and expose myself to a potential virus. If that weren’t bad enough, the flight attendant announced that we would be delayed leaving the gate as some guests needed some extra time boarding the plane. Great, I thought, just great, more bad luck for me. When it rains it pours I guess. Not only do I have to sit by virus lady, now I’m going to be late for my meeting because of someone else’s procrastination. Good grief.
As I sat there thinking how bad my day was going, I glanced over to see what virus lady was reading. It was a pamphlet from MD Andersen Cancer Center in Houston titled, “Coping With Chemotherapy.” Suddenly, I realized what was going on. She had cancer and was headed for cancer treatment in Houston. Well, don’t I feel like the biggest jerk for having bad thoughts about her. Almost at the same moment, another announcement blared from the flight attendant, “ Ladies and gentlemen, our last guests are now boarding, please give these wounded gulf war veterans a round of applause as they board.” I looked down the aisle to see two young soldiers dressed in their military best, who were missing their legs, being assisted onto the plane as the entire cabin was filled with clapping and whistling of thankfulness. Okay, now I’m wondering if there is a rock someplace that I could crawl under. It hit me and it hit me hard. How selfish I had been to only think of myself. These people had a lot more difficulties than me, yet I had only been concerned about myself and my inconvenience. I remembered a quote that a close friend of mine puts at the end of his emails and it took on new meaning for me today. “Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.” That day taught me a lesson that I won’t soon forget. Until we spend time in someone else’s shoes, we really have no idea what they are facing. So, the next time your day is made a little harder because of someone else, give them a pass because you never know the battle they are facing.
