I had an "interesting" experience on our flight to visit family a few days ago. To other USers I'd probably say the Orange One (as many of us still like to call him) emboldened gripers everywhere, and I had a dose of that.
We had landed, and were getting ready to leave the plane. Some passengers were continuing on to another city, so wouldn't be getting off. When I saw 15 rows of people ahead of us all sitting still and staying in their seats as their turn to exit got closer, I assumed they were the through travelers, and I and my son walked up the 15 seats to where the exiters (people getting up) were. Well, there was grumbling and shushing and finally some man said something about how we shouldn't have come forward, it is a covid risk, yadda yadda. What? So I said, oh, I'm sorry, I thought you all were staying on the plane. And later, did they make an announcement about not walking up that I'd missed? (I fly a lot lately and have never seen people keep 6' social distancing when exiting or entering a plane. Why? You're sitting cheek to jowl the whole time) Some other woman started talking about common courtesy and how she'd been flying 30 years and it's common courtesy to wait your turn. I repeated that I had thought they were staying on the plane. I guess they expected me to go back to our seats? Didn't even occur to me to do that, I'd dragged my cancer-ridden self and my son up 15 rows already, not going back again.
When did it become ok to be so sure you are the expert on others' motivations? In a similar situation I might have assumed someone had a connection to make, or the 6 year old needed the bathroom stat. Benefit of the doubt. I just deescalated, because I hate those youtube videos where people get into knock down drag out fights on planes. But afterwards, I had half a mind to find the woman or man and say something about having terminal cancer, probably less than 6 months etc, and how they should not assume they know what is going on in someone else's head, I'm not at my best right now, etc. To make them feel bad, not a nice motivation, and also to make them think before saying anything the next time.
Thinking about it in baggage claim made me want to cry, about being terminal and treated like that. What is it with people not giving other people a break anymore? Kindness and sympathy.
It made me even more sympathetic towards flight attendants these days, for sure.
Patricia
