This is ideal for pregnant women, alas we don’t live in South Korea:
I usually drive, but on the occasions when the husband needs the car more, I take the public transport for a change. For someone who works from home a lot, not having to squeeze with the morning/evening crowd during pregnancy is a blessing. I’ve heard of horror stories from friends who complaint of nausea throughout their train journey, and nobody offered a seat even if their bellies are obvious.
It set me thinking – why are people so selfish? Could it be that the majority of people don’t know how it feels like to
- feel like throwing up all the time (esp. in the 1st trimester)
- carry a stone around the belly, with your swollen feet flattened under the sheer weight of it all (2nd & 3rd trimester)
- feel like your groin is splitting up whenever you manoeuvre to balance yourself (2nd & 3rd trimester)
It is also interesting that for the few occasions when I took the mrt, the people who gave their seats up to me are Indians. It is a 100% in terms of statistics, so that certainly means something to me. Penny for thoughts…
I remember that one time when I adamantly stood for nearly 40mins during the train ride to my destination. By the time I got off the train, my feet were so swollen I had real difficulty walking. Unless you have been pregnant before, you probably wouldn’t know or understand. Until chivalry becomes a trend, or until we can get the other half of the population to experience / simulate pregnancy, we probably won’t have many people giving up seats anytime soon.
