Me, Me and Me

When you go on the airplane, getting an aisle seat is okay, a window seat is amazing but the middle seat is something you don’t want.

The window seat has an amazing view from the window and can sleep with support on one side. The person on the aisle can stretch her legs a little more, go to pee easily. Seat in middle and you can’t even put the hands-on armrest without making one of the other passengers go in a bad mood.

Not everyone can get a window seat in an airplane if everyone wants it desperately then all the remaining seats will go vacant.

But you have to attend that function in time or the money is an issue. Either way, someone will have to sit in the middle seat. And it ain’t a nice feeling.

So you try to swap the seats. Sometimes it is a genuine request because one of your friends is on another side. But many times it is just an excuse so you can get the better seat.

When all things fail, you call the air hostess to check if there are any seats left which are better than what you have now. But many times it is the contrary, seats are so full that many passengers can’t aboard if everyone who booked came to board the flight.

Overselling tickets is a bad tactic. But the airlines are relying on data which shows that people won’t show up and thus they can sell more tickets and earn an extra. The only time the problem will happen, someone will be ready to get aboard the next flight for a small convenience fee and the problem is solved.

But what’s really going on in here…

The Neglect

When you see this narrative, you are only seeing the problems which are being faced by you. The time when you got the window seat, did you think about the problem for a person sitting in the middle seat.

I guess the answer is no. Instead, you were busy enjoying your privilege. So why do you think that others should be empathetic towards you when you yourself can’t care a little.

What if everyone starts to see others pain and give a helping hand then chances are there will come a situation where the help would come in all four directions. The opposite which is the current scenario is the one where you think of me, me and me. And thus the situation is one which is selfish, painful and sometimes it hurts.

Be The Human

What if you don’t mind anymore if you are in the middle seat. You make peace with it for the time you have to spend. And boom, going with an airline isn’t a big deal.

Of course, you will book the window seat first. But if you end up with a middle seat, it ain’t a deal breaker.

Also the moment you show care, empathy and look through other people’s eyes, the world becomes a better place to live in. Suddenly, you have to let go of all the judgment and you start understanding their scenarios. Each of us is struggling and trapped in some kind of narrative.

Be open, caring and let’s enjoy the world as the beautiful space it is. Because you can and it’s awesome that way.