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Here's the real story behind the viral photo that had so many judging this mom

Lesson: Don't judge. It's that simple.
/ Source: TODAY

A photo of Molly Lensing, taken without her permission, first went viral years ago. The Illinois mom says the image continued to haunt her, and she's setting the record straight.

The photo was captured in a Colorado airport in 2016, where Lensing and her youngest daughter, Anastasia, then 2 months old, were attempting to return home after visiting family. In the image, Lensing looks at her cell-phone screen while her infant rests on a blanket on the airport floor.

Lensing was quickly mocked online as a woman who found her cell phone more interesting than her infant, and the photo was passed around as a meme with various judgmental quotes attached to it.

"Albert Einstein said, 'I fear the day that technology will take on our humanity ... the world will be populated by a generation of idiots,'" one version reads.

Lensing says not only that her privacy was violated by the sharing of the image, but also that there is a great deal more to the story than the photo shows.

"We had the unfortunate luck of being stuck in the middle of the Delta computer shut-down," Lensing told TODAY.com in a 2017 interview. Her flights were delayed and re-booked so many times that she spent more than 20 hours sitting in airports — with a 2-month-old.

Molly Lensing says her youngest daughter, Anastasia, was only 2 months old when the viral photo was taken.
Molly Lensing says her youngest daughter, Anastasia, was only 2 months old when the viral photo was taken.Molly Lensing

"Anastasia had been held or in her carrier for many hours. My arms were tired. She needed to stretch," said Lensing. "And I had to communicate with all the family members wondering where the heck we were."

A few months after her stressful travel experience, Lensing began seeing the image of herself circulating online. Once a few viewers identified her by name, she began receiving messages on Facebook. Some stood up for her, but others berated her for being a "terrible parent."

"I absolutely feel as though my privacy was violated," said Lensing, who works part-time as a pediatric nurse. "I had recently started working on a labor floor, and I was terrified of my co-workers or boss seeing the photo and comments and believing that I should no longer work with infants. Thankfully, this never happened."

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Author Mary Katherine Backstrom shared the image in her Facebook community, with a message of support for Lensing and all mothers who have been unfairly judged.

"No. Just no," Backstrom wrote in the post. "We do not snap photos of exhausted mothers in the airport and shame them publicly. This is gross and needs to stop. I've been this woman. My flight delayed, running on zero sleep, fearful that my baby might slip straight from my arms and onto the floor if I nodded off ... I wish she knew that there are mamas who understand exhaustion and imperfection and don't choose to pounce someone in their weakest moment."

Molly Lensing with her husband, Nick, and their daughters, Agatha, 4, Felicity, 3, and Anastasia, 1.
Molly Lensing with her husband, Nick, and their daughters, Agatha, 4, Felicity, 3, and Anastasia, 1.Molly Lensing

Lensing says most days, the photo does not cross her mind. But, on the occasions when the image makes another viral round on the internet, she turns her focus to what's important.

"I ignore the photos and the comments and lean on those close to me who know the real me," said Lensing. "I am powerless compared to the internet, and I know that I am the best momma to my girls and I know that I cherish them and am raising them the best I can."

Editor's note: This story was originally published in September 2017.