It’s important to be aware of the fact that you never know what a person might be dealing with.
While it may seem like a person is being difficult, there could be something else going on that’s not easily recognized. Below is an inspiring interaction that one of our Caravel team members shared.
“Recently I went to our family’s favorite restaurant to grab food to go. Upon arriving, I went straight to the checkout counter. While waiting for my food to arrive, I overheard a conversation taking place at one of the tables. I noticed that voices were raising, and it sounded confrontational. As the voices grew louder and I could sense a clear level of escalation. As it turns out, it was an argument between the restaurant manager and a customer. One thing that stood out to me was that there appeared to be a language barrier between the customer and manager. From what I could tell, the manager was asking the patron to leave because he wasn’t ordering food and was occupying a table. At one point the customer was asking the manager to leave him alone or there would be a fight.
Shortly thereafter I received my food and was walking out. However, sensing that things could escalate for the worse, I stopped over by the two men on my way out to see if I could help diffuse the situation or perhaps bridge the gap in the language barrier. I interrupted the argument and asked the patron what it was he was seeking. Was it food, was it a ride, or something else? His first response to my question was “I am autistic and need help, and this guy wants to kick me out in the cold”. The moment I heard autistic, I felt further obligated to help resolve this matter. I asked the man if I could buy him food, help with shelter or order an Uber for him. He asked for an Uber so I asked him to step aside and suggested to the manager that I would help sort this and that he could go back to the counter. I ordered him an Uber and moments later walked him out of the restaurant for his ride.
My biggest concern was that the manager would call police not knowing that he was dealing with a mental health issue versus something malicious. I was also worried for the patron and wanted to do whatever little I could to help see this to resolution. Once the Uber arrived and the man was off to his home, I felt a sense of relief.
It was my honor and privilege to assist in this situation. I would like to thank the Committee for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (CDEI) and Caravel for helping me develop empathy and a sense of servitude not just for our clients but the community at large. Prior to Caravel and CDEI I could never have imagined stepping into a situation such as this to voluntarily help.”
