Traveling can get very stressful. There are so many uncontrollable factors around you that can add to your anxiety. There are so many thoughts rushing through your head that by the time you board, you are exhausted. You just want to stretch your legs (not likely if you are flying economy) and relax. You can want to enjoy the beautiful view or just take a nap.
Not everyone feels comfortable flying and people should be considerate.
If it is a long flight then you should get things that can keep you entertained and distracted. Choosing the correct seat is so important. You could choose the aisle seat to access the luggage rack and the washroom easier. Others could prefer window seats because of the mesmerizing sights. The view outside is absolutely unreal. Like nature never meant for us to fly but here we are paying $15 for a sandwich while flying.
Giving Up The Window Seat
A story posted by u/Puzzleheaded-Poem170 on Reddit under r/AITA tells us about a situation that many of us have faced already. So Poem170 was on a flight and ate some edibles to destress during the flight. However, his plan of having a relaxing flight went to hell when a mother and her child sat next to him.[2]
The first incident happened, when the mom asked if I would trade seats so her child could look out. I declined and said I would rather sit in the seat I paid for…
-Reddit
All of us have been asked to exchange flight seats or have asked someone else to change seats. Of course, it is okay to politely decline. The user did the same. He booked the window seat in advance and probably paid extra. He put in his AirPods and started watching New Girl.
The child started crying and throwing a tantrum that he would not switch seats with them. The loud sound of a kid screaming in a huge metal tube at 30,000 ft is not the most calming. And if you are higher than the clouds around you then that triggers a part of you that you have never met. Poem170 kept his cool and ignored the child.
How Long Before The Baby Gets Bored Of The Phone?
A few hours later, I was playing a game on my phone and the child was very focused on it, but then as everyone here probably know you get tired of mobile games, so I turned it off.
-Reddit
Mobile games can keep us entertained for only a while before it gets boring. So like any normal human being, Poem170 stopped playing and just started to enjoy the view outside. However, his peace was short-lived.
The mom asked if I wouldn’t mind keep playing as it was entertaining her son. I said no and as soon as I did that the child starting crying and trying to grab my phone…
-Reddit
Now, asking someone else to keep doing something just so that their kid remains entertained could be considered a little selfish. The kid is just a kid and does not know any better but the mother does. It is not someone else’s job to entertain them.
Poor Poem170 had the mother making another request. Of course, he shot down her request. The mother should have stopped the child from grabbing a stranger’s phone but she did not. Things only went downhill from there.
I just simply raised my hand so the child couldn’t reach, so I said in a louder tone, “please control your child” which made the mom grab the boy and freak out at me and her screaming at me that I shouldn’t be such an asshole and only think about me.
-Reddit
Poem170 did what any of us would have done. He kept his cool and sternly asked the mother to control her son. Maybe it was the stress of traveling alone with a child or just her selfish attitude that made her lash out at him. The mother overreacted and called Poem170 an a**hole. She said that he was selfish and that he should think about others around him for once. Poem170 was left to wonder if he was actually the a**hole.
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OP Got A Lot Of Support
Poem170 had many supporters who backed him up in the comment section.
NTA The mother knew she was on a flight with a child so she should have brought things to entertain the child rather than relying on strangers. If she wanted a window seat she should have booked one.
She’s entitled to ask you, but not entitled for you to say yes.
–u/QuizzicalBumblebee
I always find it so weird that people ask to switch window seats, like you can literally choose where you sit on a plane when you book your ticket. Or is it an additional fee and I’m not remembering correctly? Either way it’s weird af and idk how you get the balls to ask a stranger to trade you. I could never.
–u/StrictStar2773
Some Redditors even shared their childhood stories.
Yeah. The youngest I can remember being on a flight was when I was 6, and I can barely remember it because my bio-dad and stepmum had packed books and activities for me to do. I didn’t bug other people, didn’t bug them too much. Just read my book and coloured.
-u/Haeronalda
But, one rare voice in the comment section pointed out that OP could have perhaps been a little more accommodating:
YTA how much effort would it take to help a struggling mom and child. How do I know she was struggling? She was traveling with a toddler. Human consideration is lacking in every day moments of kindness. YTA
–u/MamaAlcen
Yes, traveling with kids can sap your energy and can leave you exhausted but that is no reason to be ill-prepared. The mother knew that the journey would be long and the toddler bored. There was probably more she could have done to entertain her child. That way, she and everyone could have had a pleasant flight. Do you think that u/Puzzleheaded-Poem170 was the a-hole?
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Attention: While many of these stories are interesting, and we would love to take their word for it, the content in this article was taken from an unverifiable source (i.e., a Reddit forum). As such, we cannot guarantee that these events truly happened in the way that they are described in the original source.
