Taken out of context, it looked an awful lot like a worthless Dad who did not know how to change a tire.
A scandalous photo shared earlier last weekend went viral for all the wrong reasons. The photo shows a Mom with her baby, squatting down on rock hard asphalt, changing a flat on their Chevrolet Traverse.
Standing idly by is the dutiful husband, who appears to not offer even the slightest bit of help.
Changing a tire is an intermediate level skill and requires a bit of grunting and getting dirty to get done. It’s an unspoken rule and only courteous that, among couples, it’s the man’s job to do roadside repairs.
It’s no wonder the internet piled on this fellow, hurling insults and assumptions without knowing the full story.
The Facebook post below has been shared over 3,000 times, not to mention a Reddit thread with over 4,000 upvotes.
The photo eventually caught the attention of the Mom in the photo on one of several reposts.
Oklahoma Mom Ally Clark finally set the record straight.
Yep, that’s me. I was putting the lug nuts on AFTER he changed the tire so he could tighten them. This is a prime example of why people should mind their own business because they don’t know the full story. Also, going to add , my husband takes THE BEST care of me and our family.
Also, going to add- Y’all are laughing at what you assumed is going on, but I mean, me personally, if I would have saw a mom changing a tire with a baby on her hip, I would have offered to help change the tire instead of taking a picture, and then posting it on social media.
So there you have it. This Mom was just being helpful by offering to put on the lug nuts.
Clark’s small contribution is arguably not even that much help in the grand scheme of changing a flat, but that’s not the point. It’s partly helping, but partly symbolic of a healthy and happy relationship.
Helping could also be Clark’s love language.
If you’re skeptical if Clark is actually the Mom in the photo, that Traverse is rocking Oklahoma plates, the same state Clark appears to live (based on a quick, journalistic peek on her Facebook page.)
Also, her profile photo with her husband matches the guy in the photo-gone-viral (again, doing my journalistic due diligence.)
Friends, let’s not be quick to judge a situation. And, if we have the chance to help, help!
So OK – but putting the lug nuts back on is just part of the same job – I still don’t understand. Did you insist on doing them, to be helpful?
That’s what I’m choosing to believe.
So he DID change the tire, he just thought it would be good for you and the kid to put on the lug nuts to give him a much needed break. I get it now. Teamwork makes the dream work. I think if he was so good, he would have let you sit in the truck while he screwed the nuts back on. IMHO.