My next-door neighbor, Behzad, has an interesting story. Although he was born in San Antonio where his father was stationed in the Army, his family returned to their home country of Iran when he was still a baby. In 2006, at the age of 25, he returned to the U.S. for the first time since leaving the country as an infant, arriving on a flight to Denver. He chose the Denver flight because it offered the cheapest one-way airfare.
Behzad arrived with $3,000 in his pocket and spoke no English. He spent $1,500 on room and board for the first month and $1,350 for a red 1994 Toyota Corolla. Before he could get a job, Behzad had to obtain a copy of his social security card. Birth certificate in hand, he went to the Social Security Administration office in Denver. After waiting in line, completing the required paperwork, and providing the necessary documents, Behzad was told that his social security card, when issued, would be mailed to his home address.
Unable to apply for jobs without it, he checked the mailbox daily for a social security card that never arrived. After four weeks, his temporary housing arrangement ended and he was forced to move into his car. He then returned to the social security administration office to check on the status of his social security card. After learning the card was still in process, Behzad requested that the card, rather than being mailed to a home address, be held for pick up at the Social Security Administration building.
For the first two weeks, Behzad’s new “home” was a Safeway parking lot at the intersection of Yale and Monaco in Denver. Then he moved directly to the parking lot at the Social Security Administration on Jewel Avenue, where he lived for another five days – checking daily on the status of his social security card.
After more than six weeks of waiting (nearly three of which had been spent living in his car), Behzad recognized an employee in the parking lot as the woman who had originally assisted him with his application. Using hand gestures together with a handful of English words he had learned, he was able to convey that he desperately needed to receive his social security card in order to obtain a job and permanent housing. Recognizing the severity of Behzad’s plight, she took a personal interest in resolving his dilemma. Within two days, Behzad received a copy of his social security card and was finally able to embark on his pursuit of the American dream.
When Behzad first told me this story, I was reminded of the Plato quote: “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”
Too often, service providers make assumptions about customers that may have no basis in reality. For instance, Behzad may have been labeled as “pushy” or “difficult” by Social Security Administration employees who were unaware of his true motivation and the fact that he was living inside a car in their parking lot.
Not all battles involve homelessness. People struggle with all sorts of issues: health, relationships, money, childcare, transportation, or some other dimension of their lives.
Regardless of who I’m serving, when I remember that everyone I meet (regardless of appearances) is fighting his or her own unique battle, I’m reminded to: smile, make eye contact, listen, be patient, be tolerant, be understanding, be forgiving, be respectful, and, as Plato advised, I’m reminded to be kind.
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