Would you give up a seat for a soldier or an older person? If you’re a man, would you give up your seat for a woman? I can’t say I was raised this way because we never used busses or transportation, so I suppose I saw it on TV and in movies. For this reason, I’ve always made it a practice to give up my seat on busses and trains if someone needed it worse than I did. For example, an older person. But for sure, if a soldier gets onto a bus or train and has no seat, anyone who is able should stand up and offer their seat. It’s likely, though, that the soldier will refuse. They’re the ultimate self-sacrificers. I taught my children to always offer their seats to an older person, and my son to always offer his seat to a lady. My son is very young and able-bodied, so standing is no biggie to him. Now, I’m proud to say, he offers without me having to remind him. I’m proud of him. If he were on the train with the lady below, he’d move the dog himself. This is a joke, but it teaches a strong lesson. Enjoy!
An American soldier, serving in World War II, had just returned from several weeks of intense action on the German front lines. He had finally been granted R&R and was on a train bound for London. The train was very crowded, so the soldier walked the length of the train, looking for an empty seat. The only unoccupied seat was directly adjacent to a well dressed middle-aged lady and was being used by her little dog.
The war-weary soldier asked, “Please, ma’am, may I sit in that seat?” The English woman looked down her nose at the soldier, sniffed, and said, “You Americans. You are such a rude class of people. Can’t you see my Little Fifi is using that seat?”
The soldier walked away, determined to find a place to rest, but after another trip down to the end of the train, he found himself again facing the woman with the dog. Again he asked, “Please, lady. May I sit there? I’m very tired.”
The English woman wrinkled her nose and snorted, “You Americans! Not only are you rude, but you are also arrogant. Imagine!”
The soldier didn’t say anything else. He leaned over, picked up the little dog, tossed it out the window of the train, and sat down in the empty seat. The woman shrieked and railed, and demanded that someone defend her and chastise the soldier.
An English gentleman sitting across the aisle spoke up, “You know, sir, you Americans do seem to have a penchant for doing the wrong thing. You eat holding the fork in the wrong hand. You drive your autos on the wrong side of the road. And now, sir, you’ve thrown the wrong bitch out the window.”
