Standing in front of a large crowd, a man reveals his desperate intention to end his life and take the lives of his wife and two children…
The crowd hurls at him and starts to call him names.
Some called him heartless, others said he’s wicked and inconsiderate to conceive such thoughts
But when he’s asked about his reason for such a drastic decision, his answer shocks everyone
I’ll call him “Steve”
Steve and his wife have known each other since childhood and were high school sweethearts. They eventually got married and had two kids but somewhere along the way, life became challenging for Steve, leading him to contemplate suicide.
In those years, Steve’s wife lost all her close family members, had no close friends, and relied heavily on him for support.
Steve said when he thought of taking his life, he couldn’t bear the idea of leaving his wife to endure the pain of his absence and struggle alone with the kids.
On hearing Steve’s reasons, everyone’s jaw dropped!
You could feel the silence in the room. Although they did not support the idea of taking lives, they felt the underlying emotions behind it and could relate to a part of the story.
He sounded like a broken man who was tired of life and battling with the love for his family that he sort the most foolish of ways to “care” for them in his absence
Maybe suicide wasn’t the solution but you could tell that somewhere in Steve’s heart, his actions, though unjustifiable, were driven by love
Two months ago, a random woman I spoke to, told me she had been barren for 12 years and asked her husband to find a mistress and get a baby
How we met?
That afternoon I booked an Uber to pick me up from a hotel where I was spending some days and she was the driver who pulled outside
She sat laid back with hands on her steering wheel.
A black veil ran covered her entire face and only her eyes were visible.
She was a pretty Muslim lady, visibly around her early 30s
I’ll call her Tina
As soon as Tina arrived the hotel, I was first to note that I had never been driven by a woman in an Uber
She asked if I wanted to cancel the ride and request for a male driver
I told Tina a little about my mom, how she treated everyone who came around the house with so much grace and patience, leading me to build the impression that women will always care and put their hearts to whatever they do
For the 20 minutes we rode, Tina and I dived into the most engaging conversation like we had known each other for years
The revelation that she had been barren for over 12 years and had asked her husband to find a mistress and get a baby, came as a shock to me!
Although Tina’s partner blatantly refused and promised that he was going to stand by her all through the medical journey, the conversation made me rethink
Imagine meeting Tina for the first time and hearing that she advised her husband to go out and get another lady pregnant, what would be your first impression?
That will be a strange story
But which of them is a crazier story?
Is it Steve planning to end his life and that of his family or Tina willingly asking her partner to go and get a kid outside their marriage?
Both stories are a little extreme
In fact, for you reading right now, maybe none of these stories is morally justifiable by your standards, but would you agree that the reasons behind every act seem a bit logical?
Absolutely right?
A broken Steve who is tired of life battles with suicidal thought, yet seeking a way to ‘care’ for his family after his passing
A troubled woman, unable to conceive but desperately trying to accommodate her husband’s wish for a child
The underlying message is that CONTEXT is crucial in any situation.
A lot of times we’re quick to rush into conclusions by hearing a story at face value
And the internet isn’t even helping matters
The truth is, the first side of the story is always the true side until the second version resurfaces
Never be in a haste to judge people when you have a limited understanding of the context. Focus on your lane
Everyone has got a story that if told somewhere, will be perceived as crazy until the real context is revealed
There’s a second side to every story that has been told for the first time
For every story there are three versions, his story, their story and the true story. But here’s the real truth, none of these stories is your damn business!
Arrey Bate
Internet Entrepreneur | Author | Journalist