Help a Traveling Parent Out

Help out your fellow traveling parents!

Last week, my husband and I were traveling without our daughter to the New York area.  While waiting for our flight home at JFK, I visited the airport bathroom and saw a single mom with an infant struggling to wash her own hands and the hands of her baby.  I had seen her in our gate area, and knew she was on my flight.  I struck up a conversation with her and told her that I often travel with my daughter, commiserating about the challenges of it all.  I told her to let me know if I could help her out in any way since I was childless this time.  She looked so grateful and immediately asked if I could just hold the little one for a moment so she could change into some leggings.  I was happy to oblige, and I know it made her otherwise stressful day a little bit better.

Fast forward three days later when I was taking my daughter out in our hometown for an ice cream cone.  Who should walk in the store but that very same mom and her baby!  We were shocked by the small world aspect of it all, and I was happy to get a report from the mom that her cross-country flight had otherwise gone well.  She was still so grateful and even surprised that I had offered to help her out, and it made me feel good to have done that little kindness, particularly as I’ve been the recipient of similar help from time-to-time in my travels.  This just goes to show you that a little kindness – even to total strangers – is worth it!  You never know who you will cross paths with again and even if you don’t, you never know when someone else will pay your kindness forward to others.  I guarantee you that the mother I helped will help someone out herself in the future.  And we’ve all made the otherwise stressful travel experience a little more manageable.

When I travel, either with or without my daughter, my husband and I always offer to help a struggling parent out if we have the hands and the time to help.  My husband once carried a car seat down the aisle for a mom who was traveling with three kids by herself, and my daughter has shared a coloring book or a toy with a nearby child.  Every little bit helps!  And it is nice to hear that other traveling parents out there like to help out as well.

Have you helped out a fellow passenger that you saw struggling with the challenges of traveling with kids?  Share your war stories in the comments.