No No’s For Mommy & Daddy Blog

It has been days since I saw the story that I am going to share with you and my stomach still tightens just thinking about the mess. I was at the airport sending (sadly, I might add) my increasingly-independent fourteen year old off to a spiritual camp. Our remaining moments together were rudely interrupted by the loudest screams that I have ever heard in my life at a nearby gate. I tried to be polite and not stare, but I had to find the source of the blaring disruption. It wasn’t hard to find the source, so I focused on a professional looking, middle-aged woman with four well-kept children and an older woman. The older woman appeared to be the younger woman’s mother. The children ranged in ages from about 10 months to eight years old. The two older children and the smallest child were amusing themselves while their four-year-old brother behaved as though he had lost his mind. He screamed and rolled around on the floor. He pushed and struggled against his mother and grandmother to the point where they left him alone. They were the only ones seated at the gate. It was hard to determine if they had missed their flight or if they were not allowed to get on the plane. Everyone around me was in agreement that the airlines shouldn’t allow that child on the plane. His temper tantrum would violate the rights of the other passengers. I work with children and I have children, but I have NEVER seen a scene like that, except in a special education class for kids with behavior problems. I assumed that this child had a disability, but then I wondered why his mom would attempt to travel by air with him. It also seemed as though a quick-thinking pediatrician could have helped her prepare a child with his symptoms for a flight. The boy’s mother appeared to be an intelligent woman with access to these type of resources. If you think that I am being mean then you don’t understand how LOUD he was and how hard he was throwing his body around! If he were riding in a car with you, then you wouldn’t be able to drive without having a car accident because he would be 1) kicking your seat, 2) throwing his body around, 3) trying to get out of the seat belt, AND 4) opening the car door. This little boy was just that W-I-L-D! Well, after quite some time, the young mother scooped up the baby and her two older children. They pulled out their tickets and they boarded the plane. She left her children-of-the-corn son and her mother behind with several bags. In case you’re wondering, my son’s flight has already left by now and I was so distracted by the ruckus that I forgot to cry — I am sure that he was relieved about missing one of my teary goodbyes! Anyway, I hung around to lend the grandmother a hand because she was feeble-looking and she had turned a sickly shade of red trying to restrain her grandson. He was putting up quite a fight! She was too small to walk with him while he fought her. She also had all those bags with her. When she found a nearby wheelchair, she struggled to put him and their bags in it. Everyone around her left them alone for fear of causing the child’s scene to take a turn for the worse — if that was even remotely possible. I counted eight times when she would put him back in the wheelchair AFTER he kicked and fought his way onto the floor. I waited more than an hour to lend a hand, but my instincts and training said that I would send him into a worse frenzy. I felt so bad for the grandmother, because she had such a fight on her hands and she didn’t have any help. I felt bad for the child IF he truly couldn’t help himself. I didn’t feel bad for the little boy’s mother. I BLAME her for that boy’s fit. YES, someone has to be held accountable for the avoidable public disturbance. Her son belongs to her, she is responsible for him, so his mother must accept the responsibility for his actions. This mother’s commotion assaulted the ears and nerves of many people. We know that “kids will be kids” and a reasonable person allows for that type of disruption. But when a child behaves like he’s been possessed by a demonic spirit in a public place, then it’s unreasonable to expect tolerance. The victims have every right to be offended. Quite a few of us in the area found the lengthy disturbance offensive. We couldn’t and shouldn’t have to leave the scene. The problem was hers, so was the solution. That little boy’s parent made the situation more explosive by leaving him for her mother to handle. Maybe I need to get out more, because I was truly traumatized by the CHAOS and helplessness on the part of two seemingly-sensible adults. He was a C-H-I-L-D for goodness sake! Is there anyone out there who feels my pain?