It’s plain and simple: when on a plane, please be considerate of other passengers.

I will start with a simple anecdote. I recently arrived from Davao and was seated at the exit row, by the aisle. Two other men occupied the middle and window seat. I was engrossed in reading a novel, and when the man by the window seat stood up, I reached a part that made me utter a very sarcastic, “Oh God!”

Now, since we were on the exit row, the man by the window didn’t even bother me or the man in the middle seat, since there was enough space for him to go through. But I had obviously muttered the words aloud, such that both men glared at me. Thank God they understood when I laughed and said, “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean it for you, I was reacting to my book.” And they both laughed.

So this just shows that our words and actions can be greatly misinterpreted by those around you, especially when in a confined area such as an airplane.

Airplane rides are often a great indicator to me that there are hardly any gentlemen left, sad as it is to see. On another flight, I had to take my tote bag out of the overhead compartment. By this time, my bag was already in the back, and in front were four heavy boxes of biscuits.

I tried lifting the boxes, which I could hardly reach, let alone carry. The guy behind me did nothing. The guy on the aisle opposite the overhead compartment also did nothing, even though they saw I was struggling and too short to reach the compartment in the first place.

Luckily, there was one gentleman who still acted like one, and asked me if I needed help. I was so appreciative I kept gushing thank you’s to him.  But here’s the clincher. The boxes belonged to the man in the aisle opposite the overhead compartment, who was just watching me struggle.

Oversized boxes

When the man who helped me out brought down the oversized biscuit boxes, he didn’t even have the courtesy to thank the guy; he simply took the boxes and moved them out of the way. And this really happened.

I guess it is pretty obvious I’ve traveled for work a lot recently, because I have another story. This time, the guy seated in front of me actually stood up when he saw I couldn’t reach the overhead compartment, and helped me out by putting my bag up.

Added to this, when the plane landed, he stood up and got my bag down. So yes, gentlemen still do exist, and I am so pleasantly surprised that men still help out ladies.

Another nice example was a man seated on the aisle seat. In the middle seat was an elderly lady who was literally coughing the entire flight. This man in the aisle was obviously traveling for work, as his laptop was out and he seemed to be intently working.

Everyone around this woman kept covering their faces, naturally afraid of what they may catch. So I observed and noticed that the man seated next to her was clearly bothered, but did nothing to show it through his actions.

But this is what is worth writing about. The elderly lady stood up, and was obviously sick and could hardly walk.  She entered the business class section and was shown out by the steward. In other words, the steward didn’t even allow her to use the business class restrooms, which were much closer to her assigned seat because she was seated in economy.

But even after seeing that the woman could hardly walk, he didn’t help her and pointed her to the back of the rather large airplane. By this time, I took such pity on the elderly woman and was about to stand up to help her to the back of the plane, when the man seated next to her stood up and asked if she needed help. She was so grateful, the smile on her face was huge.

It was quite a heartwarming moment, because despite the fact that this man’s seatmate was annoying him with her coughing, he still went out of his way to help.

This story is one worth writing about because it certainly embodies what etiquette stands for. It isn’t simply proper behavior, but more importantly, it is kindness and consideration for others.