I was on the #2 with some campers near the front of the bus. It was a crowded bus so some of the kids I was minding were sitting in the seats reserved for seniors/mothers-to-be. When an older woman stepped on and immediately snarled at one of my young girls for not yielding her seat, you told her she should have asked nicely.
You were absolutely right. The young girl was in conversation and hadn’t yet noticed the older woman.
Admittedly, I don’t think I would have said the same had you not been there. I hesitated because she was an older, respectable-looking woman. But that doesn’t excuse her behaviour. Many of us know that what is right is right is right, but we too often don’t make ourselves heard. You did it unflinchingly. Thank you for setting an example (and at such a young age!).
It stuck. —Appreciative Camp Leader
This article appears in Jul 12-18, 2012.
I don’t know OL. The older lady has probably dealt with this situation before and gotten lip. A nicer story would have been for the girls not to be sitting in those seats at all.