When we need to fly somewhere my wife always buys our tickets early enough so she can select our seats. She prefers the aisle seat while I like the window seat. She doesn’t feel so confined and I can sleep with my head against the side of the plane. It works pretty good but there is a problem. More times than not we alienate the person sitting between us. It’s not because we are talking over them. We try not to be so rude. It happens when they first arrive. You should see their faces light up when they realize we are together. How could they be so fortunate? This is an opportunity for them to be noble and offer to change seats so we can sit together. We won’t mention that they will not have to sit for hours in the middle seat. When we decline their generosity they go hostile on us. There is an instant disappearance of their smile and a humph. They plop down into the seat of discomfort and rarely will they ever again say a word to us. It is like it was our fault they bought their ticket too late to get a decent seat.
Now being the nice guy that I am I sometimes try to warm them up with a smile or a greeting but it rarely works. I know what Jesus would do but I am not yet that sanctified. Jesus said, “Do unto others what you would have them do to you.” The Golden Rule indicates I should give up my seat. But I revert to the Silver Rule of don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you. I never awaken them so I can crawl over them to get to the restroom. I can wait. After all I am a nice guy!
Spring Of Life