Loud and unruly children in public places can be pretty distracting. Depending on the child, it can range from distracting to downright irritating to some people.
But is that really fair to the child?
Most of the time, children just react the only way children know how to. Especially when they’re really young and confused.
It can be especially embarrassing for mothers, who’ll have to bear the brunt of the blame from onlookers. Not everyone knows how hard it is to be a mom.
This story here that happened on a plane is about one such scenario.
And it’s a darn good look into things from the perspective of the mom and her children.
The mother is Jessica Rudeen, who has two small children. A 4-month-old boy named Alexander and a 3-year-old toddler named Caroline.
It appears as though the children aren’t fond of flights, which Jessica quickly found out when the infant boy began crying and making noise on the flight.
They were flying to North Carolina to visit the kids’ grandma when the two little ones quickly realized they weren’t a fan of being on a plane.
Naturally, Jessica feared the reaction from the other passengers. We know how commonly people complain of noisy children on flights, and I’m sure Jessica didn’t want to be the reason they’d complain.
A 4-month-old has a lot to be scared and confused about, so can’t say I blame the boy- whose name is Alexander- for making a fuss.
And because a crying infant wasn’t enough, the toddler also joined her brother in the distress.
The takeoff process was daunting to her, and she couldn’t help but panic and cry when the plane began to fly. Caroline began screaming and kicking at the seats.
A man seated next to them couldn’t help but notice.
He was Todd Walker, and he immediately wanted to help the distressed infant and toddler. Todd knew how awkward and difficult it must have been for Jessica to manage.
“Todd reached down and said, ‘I’ll hold him.’ I didn’t know what else to do, it was kind of my only option. I got Caroline down in the seat and she was kicking the seat, screaming and saying she wanted to get off the plane.” – Jessica recalled as she told the story to GMA
Todd was a father himself and immediately knew of several ways to calm down the two children.
First, he offered to hold the crying Alexander for Jessica. While she turned her attention to a distressed, screaming Caroline, Todd also stepped in to help.
He started talking to Caroline and got the coloring pages out.
Caroline then calmed down and began coloring away with Todd. This changed the scene immediately, something Jessica was very thankful for.
As luck would have it, they were headed for the same destination.
When the first flight landed, Todd accompanied Jessica’s two kids along to the connecting flight.
The toddler walked while holding her new friend’s hand. They were to go their separate ways soon, so they talked while they could. Todd Walker became a valued friend to both Jessica and her kids that day, and she never forgot it.
She thanked him on Facebook, and the story went viral.
With a son of his own attending college in Kansas, Todd was able to make use of his parenting skills he had under his belt. It made all the difference that day.
All this really goes to show how much a kind gesture and a helping hand can mean to someone.
Todd’s own experience as a father made it possible for this sweet moment to happen.
Watch the short video on it down below, and read more from the sources at the end. Kindly share this article with the people you know as well!
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