The Kindness of Strangers

I recently had to fly on an airplane with Owen, all by myself. I was coming home from a trip to California. On my way out, my sister, Kerry, flew with me, so I had a lot of help with all the little (or big) things...like holding Owen so I could go to the bathroom; entertaining Owen when he's fussy; changing a diaper in my lap since there was no room in the tiny airplane stall; sitting close to me while I tried to discreetly breastfeed on the plane; making his bottle up for me while I was feeding Owen; holding my drink on her tray since I had Owen in my lap (which incidentally I ended up knocking over onto Kerry's coat :( ....oops); helping me get my luggage; helping me get Owen in and out of the Baby Bijorn while juggling the diaper bag, suitcase and car seat; among many other things. Needless to say, she was a big help. So I was a little bit (ok, that's an understatement) nervous about flying back by myself.

The day came. My Dad parked the car so he could help me in with my luggage. This was greatly appreciated. My first obstacle alone, came when I had to use the bathroom with a baby attached to the front of my body. Luckily, with some agile moves I was able to accomplish this goal. I then followed that up by completing many of the tasks Kerry had originally helped me with. I found a seat at the front of the plane, fed Owen (who fell asleep in my arms during his feeding), consumed my drink and snacks while he was asleep, mixed his bottle up with one hand, and somehow juggled getting him back in the Bijorn in my isle while people walked by jostling me and my diaper bag.

But my great accomplishments at learning to travel sans two extra hands is not the point of this. The point is that by traveling alone, I was able to recognize so much of the kindness of strangers all around me. It was so great hearing constantly from fellow travelers and flight attendants what an amazing traveler Owen was. And let's be honest, he was STELLAR...but it's really nice when other people recognize and acknowledge that. (It also didn't hurt that they repeatedly told me how adorable he is) :D What was really great, however, was all of the help I received. These are some of the highlights:

• The lady across from me on the plane offering to put my diaper bag on the seat next to her as I was struggling to make space in the overhead compartment (even though it wasn't allowed and had to be stowed overhead, the gesture was nice).
• The man who got my diaper bag out of the overhead compartment for me.
• The woman who helped me while I was changing Owen's diaper in the bathroom. At first she accidentally knocked her bathroom stall door into me while I was standing there. Then the door wouldn't stay shut unless someone was in there so it kept opening and banging into me. She tried relentlessly to get the door to stay shut and finally figured out a way by shoving toilet paper in between the door and the door frame.
  
• The man who saw I was struggling to get the plastic wrap off the stroller while holding Owen and my bag. He came over and kindly got it free for me and then while gesturing to the other "odd-sized items" said, "Is anything else yours?" I told him the car seat was so he proceeded to help me with that. And then he asked if I needed help with anything else (which I didn't) and went on his way after I gave him a big thank you.

Those are just a few of the people and moments I can think of. It's nothing monumental, but it felt big to me. I really appreciate that people took time to help a struggling mother in need, and often went out of their way to do so. Although traveling alone was somewhat difficult at times, I'm glad I did it because it really opened my eyes to the kindness and generosity of those around me. I hope that I can show similar kindnesses to others in need.