BOY DIDN’T CEASE KICKING MY SEAT DURING THE FLIGHT, SO MY DAD GAVE HIS PARENTS A NICE LESSON
Greetings everyone, I am Evelyn from Minnesota. I was traveling with my dad from Alberta to Minneapolis, as my dad’s business is also based in Canada.
What commenced as a pleasant and comfortable flight turned into our ordeal merely 30 minutes later. Approximately 40 to 45 minutes into our flight, a child, around ten years old, as you could see, started kicking my seat.
Initially, I assumed it was a joke. I turned and politely said, “hey buddy could you please stop that? I really want to enjoy my flight.” His parents looked at me oddly while the kid frowned… But I assumed he understood.
5 minutes later, sure enough… he was now hitting both my seat and my dad’s seat. My dad also politely requested he stop, and he did… for approximately ten seconds. Then, he started up again. Bam Bam Bam…
So, rather than us calling the flight attendant, my dad RECLINED his seat to its maximum extent. And when he could no longer kick us, his parents asked my dad to raise the seat back up, BECAUSE HIS HIGHNESS SHOULD HAVE A NICE FLIGHT.
My dad politely declined. AND BELIEVE THE AUDACITY, they then called the flight attendant and THIS is when things became interesting!
Boy’s dad: This man has reclined his seat, and my son is uncomfortable!
Dad: My seat is my issue,
FA (to my dad): Would you prefer to keep your seat reclined?
Dad: Yes, please.
FA: Well then…
As the flight attendant was speaking to my dad, the scene unfolded. The boy’s father… ⬇️
(The continuation, and the full story are below in the first comment)…STARTED RECORDING ON HIS PHONE! Yes, you read that correctly. He started recording my dad, saying things like “This man is being unreasonable and aggressive” and “He is refusing to move his seat back for my son”.
My dad, completely unfazed, simply said, “Sir, you should focus on teaching your son some manners instead of recording me. My seat is reclined because your son was kicking it relentlessly. Once he stops, I will consider moving it.”
The flight attendant, who had been watching this unfold with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, finally stepped in. “Sir,” she said to the boy’s father, pointing to the recording phone, “you are not allowed to record other passengers without their consent. Please stop immediately and delete that recording.”
The boy’s father huffed and reluctantly stopped recording, but continued to glare at my dad. The boy, seeing his father’s failed attempt at intimidation, started to whine loudly, demanding his dad make my dad put the seat back up.
This was when my dad delivered the final blow, the ‘nice lesson’ as he called it later. He turned to the boy, smiled gently, and in a calm, clear voice said, “Young man, the reason my seat is like this is because you were using it as a drum. I asked you politely to stop, twice. You didn’t. So, now, this is how my seat is going to be. When you can sit nicely, and your parents ask me politely if I would consider raising my seat back up, then maybe we can talk. But right now, this is what you get.”
The boy, surprisingly, seemed to understand. He stopped whining, his eyes wide with a dawning comprehension that his actions had consequences. He looked at his parents, then back at my dad’s reclined seat, and then sat back in his own seat, finally still.
The flight attendant, clearly impressed by my dad’s calm handling of the situation, gave him a small, discreet nod of approval. She then turned to the boy’s parents, a slightly sterner look on her face. “Is there anything else I can assist you with?” she asked, her tone leaving no room for further complaints about the seat.
The boy’s parents, deflated and embarrassed, mumbled a ‘no’ and retreated into sullen silence. For the rest of the flight, the boy remained remarkably quiet and still. My dad kept his seat reclined for a good hour, just to make the point, before eventually raising it a little, though not fully upright.
The rest of the flight was peaceful. When we landed in Minneapolis, as we were disembarking, we walked past the boy and his parents. The boy actually looked up at my dad and muttered a quiet “sorry”. His parents, however, avoided eye contact and hurried off the plane.
My dad chuckled as we walked through the airport. “Sometimes, Evelyn,” he said, “a gentle lesson in cause and effect is more effective than getting angry or escalating things. They needed to understand that actions have consequences, and hopefully, they learned something today, both the parents and the boy.”
And you know what? I think they did. It wasn’t about being petty or mean-spirited. It was about standing up for ourselves in a calm and controlled way, and making it clear that we wouldn’t tolerate being disturbed. It was a long flight, but in the end, my dad’s ‘nice lesson’ ensured we had a peaceful journey, and hopefully, taught a family a valuable lesson in airplane etiquette and parenting.