An Open Letter to My Lyft Driver Last Week in Shreveport, LA

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Living in Shreveport-Bossier City, LA, it feels like we're constantly being bombarded with bad news, and just when you think humankind can't sink any lower, something happens...

Last week I had one of those days. I felt like I was running behind all day, and then I hit something in the road on the way to volunteer at GREAT in Greenwood, LA. The second I hit it, I knew my tire was shredded.

I pulled my truck over at the Flying J truck stop and contacted my insurance company to have them send out a tow truck. I bought the tire warranty when I purchased my vehicle, and I wasn't confident that I could put on my spare tire safely enough to drive to the dealership in Bossier. I'm glad I erred on the side of caution. In the past, I've been able to hop in the tow truck and get a ride, but things change. This time I had to get an alternate ride, so I put in a request via Lyft. Boy, am I glad I did.

That's when I met Denise. We got to talking, and without sharing too much personal information, she ended up not only getting me where I needed to go that day but also helped me to solve another problem I was trying to work through.

My sweet momma had a stroke last year that affected her vision, so she no longer drives, and unfortunately, she let her military ID expire. The reason why this is an issue is because your military ID is also your insurance card. It also allows you to 'sponsor' visitors, which allows them to come on base at Barksdale. Well, since her license was expired, she couldn't sponsor me... or my nephew who had already tried to take her twice. It was frustrating, to say the least, but I get it; we're talking about an important military installation here. I wouldn't let me on base either!

That's when my Lyft driver, Denise, informed me that she was a military veteran. That's also when she told me that she'd be happy to take my mom on base and skip the whole stopping at the visitor's center rigamarole because my mom had a temporary pass. And that's exactly what she did. She picked my mom up 45 minutes away from where she lives, took her on base, waited for her while she got her new military ID, and then took her home again.

You might think I'm crazy to trust a complete stranger with my mom, but sometimes you meet someone and you just know that they're inherently good. Mom really enjoyed Denise's company too, and the cool thing is now that she has another measure of independence. So, thank you, Denise. Thank you for simply being you and restoring my faith in people.

xo Bristol