Things Aren’t Always as They Seem

Two weeks ago I was in a great mood as I left my office.  I was driving home, and I didn’t to come to a complete stop at a stop sign. Just coming from Korea, most of us know that road signs and signals are considered “optional” over there, and these bad habits, well… they carry over back to the states.

So, you can imagine that I was not even remotely surprised when I saw the flashing red and blue lights come out behind me.

I pulled over immediately and reached in the glove box for my information. As the military policeman approached my car cautiously, I was smiling and said hi. He gave a very formal introduction and the famous one liner, “Do you know why I stopped you?”

Still smiling, and almost laughing, I answered with this “Hi! I’m Felicia, the girl that just blew through that stop sign over there.  I haven’t been back in the states long, and in Korea stop signs are optional, and for the record, yes I know I’m wrong. Here’s my license and registration, and I hope you have had a productive day!”

He was in a state of shock for about 30 seconds, then finally bursts out laughing. He said this was a first for him, stopping someone that just blatantly told him they knew what they did and it was their fault.

We talked while he ran my plates, and it turns out that he gets yelled at often. 

It’s his job to pull people over that he feels have broken the law, or he just wants to let them know that their taillight is out as a courtesy. I always assumed that, because we are all military, we would still treat our military police with respect for doing their job and appreciate that they were out in the community.

He went back to his vehicle and finished the paperwork, and when he came back, he didn’t give me a ticket. Instead, he thanked me for being courteous to him and gave me a warning.

My thought for the day was just because he’s a police officer, doesn’t give people the right to be mean to him.

Later that same day I drove to the next town over to look at some Christmas decorations that were on sale. I had this van that was driving really close to me and kept trying to force me to drive way over the speed limit. I was angry and decided to pull over. When I did, this lady drove by, her window down and letting me have it. Of course I’m really mad now, thinking about how she had such nerve, and for some reason, it really bothered me.

How can people seem to feel entitled to things like the road, and no one else seems to matter?

As I continued down the road, I saw someone with their flasher blinking on the side of the road. Getting closer I noticed it was the same van that had passed me, but I couldn’t seem to pass them when I saw her trying to get out of the driver’s side. I pulled off and stepped out of my vehicle.

I saw that not only was she pregnant, but she was having hard contractions and in serious labor. 

I immediately dialed 911 and got her to lay down on the back seat of the van and start her breathing techniques.

The contractions were less than a minute apart, and I told the 911 dispatcher that we were in serious trouble. I reached down and unlaced a boot so I would have a boot lace ready and grabbed my aid bag. She was crowning and we were past the point of no return.

I heard the ambulance in the distance, but there was no way they were going to make it in time. The baby’s head was out, and I tried to tell her she needed to push. As the shoulders came through, the EMTs show up beside me and panic. I laughed and said, “A few blankets and some sutures would be great about now, and maybe some oxygen.”

When this ordeal was over, we had a healthy 7 pound, 4 ounce little girl, but during this entire process, the mother kept apologizing to me about being rude when she was trying to get to the hospital. Her husband was deployed and it was her first child. They had been at the installation less than two months and she didn’t know anyone. I found out what unit her service member was in and contacted their FRG, who didn’t even know she was there.

I was so disappointed.

No one should ever have do go through this alone without a support system, especially in the military community.

Twice in one day, I learned an important lesson..

Things are not always what they seem. 

Police are treated differently for doing their jobs, and we assume people should always be happy go lucky and never have a moment. I’m here to tell you that everyone has their moments, and that doesn’t mean they’re necessarily bad people.

As I lift my glass of wine this evening, I salute our local military police force for being a great group of people doing their jobs. I also salute people that are in a bigger hurry than I am. You never know what hand they were dealt this week. If they need to move a little faster than I do, I’ll just pull over from now on and let them pass.

After all, we never really know what’s going on in their life, and I’ll always be in love with a little baby girl….named Felicia!

Have you had an experience where things were not what they seemed? What lessons did you take away?