This Mom Explains Why You Don’t Owe Strangers Candy For Sitting Near Your Babies
By
Shehzad in
Amazing
On 23rd January 2017
We have all sat next to a baby on a plane before. And you know that when you see that baby, you start praying that they don't decide that being up in the air for hours is the best time to scream and cry.
But sometimes, it happens. It's inevitable. Some parents have tried to preempt complaints or glares from strangers by giving out bags of candy and ear plugs. You've seen the pictures of these baggies, often with little notes attached, all over the Internet.
But what may seem like a harmless trend has one mom up in arms.
#1 Cassie Murdoch firmly believes that parents do not owe strangers bags of candy for having to sit next to your babies.
In a brutally honest post on Mashable, Murdoch shared her beliefs.
“Taking candy from a baby is easy,” she started, “but there’s zero reason that parents should be handing it out to strangers on a plane to buy cooperation in case their kid screams. No matter what the internet says.”
#2 She references this photo, which was recently posted on Reddit.
The comment on the post reads, “Lady on the airplane just handed this to all of the rows around us. She now has an entire team of passengers ready to help.”
It’s true that these little gestures have become a viral trend. You’ve seen similar pictures all over the place.
#5 But while most people may find these little candy handouts endearing, Murdoch has a different reaction.
“On the surface it’s a nice gesture,” she wrote, “but as the mother of twin toddlers, every time I see one of these baggies go viral I am filled with rage.”
#6 She explains that the cumulative effect of these goody bags actually does more harm than good.
According to Murdoch, they set an “unrealistic expectation that the next time you board a plane and see someone holding a baby that person owes you a preemptive apology in the form of Tootsie Rolls. The thing about these goody bags that has rubbed many parents the wrong way from the start is that they send the message we should feel bad for having babies who act like babies. We shouldn’t.”
#7 She also points out that sometimes, adults can be just as annoying as kids on flights.
Murdoch shares this somewhat humorous example: “I once spent a flight trapped next to a man who packed and consumed not one but three intensely smelly tuna sandwiches during the course of the trip. I did not receive a single goody bag for my suffering.”
#8 While air travel may be difficult for everyone, it's much harder for parents of small children.
Murdoch points out that “most people who fly with their kid have also dragged a car seat, a stroller, extra food and diapers, and approximately 9,000 tons of other miscellaneous supplies.”
The vast majority of parents take as many measures as possible to prevent their kids from bothering strangers on flights. Murdoch feels that she shouldn’t also have to worry about bringing candy to appease everyone around her.
#9 Murdoch has traveled with her twins before, and she notes that for the most part, fellow travelers have been helpful and understanding.
But, she wrote, “even if you do encounter haters, who cares?”
#10
Murdoch implores us to remember that we all know screaming babies are a possibility, and that chances are, the parents are the ones suffering the most.
“If you want to become a real viral hero,” she wrote, “Buy that parent a drink and offer to hold their baby while they drink it.”
