"Please fasten your seat belts, we are now ready for take-off," a mechanical voice boomed through the aircraft. Immediately, I heard the clicks of seatbelts being fastened by the people around me and I would have done my own, if it weren't for the bawling, kicking infant in my arms. Carrying out a final check, a flight attendant spotted me and told me to fasten my seatbelt. I told her I would get things sorted as soon as my little one gained some kind of composure.

The baby accepted some milk and just when her eyes began to droop, the flight attendant walked by again. "Seatbelt Ma'am," she said. If I had moved even an inch, the little one would have stopped having the milk and started crying again. "Please, just for a second, shush", I said. Not a bright idea, by any means.

Her eyes flashed and with exaggerated politeness as she said: "Fasten your seatbelt". I nodded and hoped she would go and strap herself in one of those lovely cabin crew seats, but she waited persistently for me to belt up (pun not intended).

The baby was just about to nod off, any second now. If I could only stay still for an instant ... But the flight attendant got really impatient and in a steely voice told me it was the captain's orders that everyone must fasten their seatbelts. Then something happened and the bottle cork went flying.

Really rough week

I don't know what triggered it, probably the fact that I had been carrying a crying infant at the airport for the last couple of hours or so. Or it could simply be the fact that I had had a really rough week and the flight attendant rubbed me the wrong way at the wrong time. Indeed, I completely understood how a rubber-band felt when it snapped, given the fact that I felt exactly like one.

"I understand, OKAY? Give me a break! I'm doing it! Could you PLEASE shush it!? My baby hasn't slept in ages!" I said angrily. As a result the baby wakes, starts crying again and I fasten my seatbelt and that God-forsaken infant seatbelt too. That's when she finally left me.

A few minutes after take-off, I realised I shouldn't have snapped at the woman — after all, she was just doing her job and seatbelts actually save lives.

I started feeling cold and was brooding darkly about why airplanes were always so cold. Suddenly, she appeared out of the blue and I requested for a blanket, very politely. She got one immediately. I thanked her and then a weird apology tumbled forth. She smiled and told me it was natural to lose one's cool at times. Then she said she liked the baby's outfit (a personal favourite) and I was already feeling better. "The baby looks just like you," she said.

We were soon chatting like old friends. I learnt that her brother's girlfriend was expecting a baby and that they were all very excited. We exchanged email addresses and I thanked God that I made amends for my impulsive behaviour.

There are times when I've been impetuous and believe me; I've gotten into enough trouble! Well-meaning elders have often sat me down to explain to me the importance of silence being golden versus bluntness being regrettable. Sadly the effect never really took place as it was meant to and I sometimes feel like Eliza Doolittle of My Fair Lady who was strictly told to discuss "the weather and everybody's health" by Henry Higgins prior to the racing event and ended up "doing everybody in" with that excellent gin story. (It is another matter that Audrey Hepburn and I don't resemble and we definitely do not share the same dress-size and neither did a Freddie of today's day and age swoon like that at my feet). Oh well!

 

Mehmudah Rehman is a Dubai-based freelance writer.