Traveling with young children can be a bit of a wildcard. You can hit the jackpot with an easy trip, or just be happy to limp your way across the finish line as you arrive at your destination. The latter rings true for a small family traveling from Germany to New Jersey, as shown in a recent viral video of a toddler having a tantrum on an 8-hour Lufthansa flight.

Shane Townley was already seated on the flight when the mother and two children began boarding. The older three-year-old child was already screaming as he walked down the aisle, which no doubt shocked the passengers. Townley decided he would document the child’s behavior and begun filming an eight-hour feature on his phone’s camera.

We can all agree the screams and behavior from the child are distressing and give major props to the cabin for maintaining their cool for what was undoubtedly a long flight. But perhaps the most disturbing is the awful verbiage used in the film to describe the child as “demonic” and a “nightmare.”

It’s a shame that Townley found it in his better interest to sit back and shame the mother for her parenting skills, instead of offering to help in some way. We can only guess, but it’s unlikely Townley is a parent.

Would efforts from others have helped the child, who has later been identified as having a medical disability that affects his behavior? Maybe not. But in this world, we’re all a little better off trying, than sitting back to mock and criticize a mom who is clearly at her wit’s end.

A recent story about a sobbing mother being comforted by fellow moms at an airport (are we seeing a pattern here?) are the tales we love sharing. They’re the stories that show how beautiful humanity can be, and we can always use more of those.

Have you ever helped out a mom in need “in the wild” as it were? We’d love to hear your stories of parents helping parents in the comments below.

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