Being kind to others, giving them a helping hand, sharing your things with those who might be down on their luck—all of these are very admirable qualities. Human beings are hardwired for being social and our brains reward us for our altruism. However, there’s always a chance that someone will try to take advantage of your kindness.
Case in point, a redditor shared a bit of drama that recently happened at the pool. They told the r/entitledparents subreddit how some mom yelled at their kids to share their toys with her own child… something that they’d previously been doing anyway.
Disliking the entire situation and wanting to shut down this behavior, the redditor took matters into their own hands and gave the entitled mom a taste of her own medicine. Oh, did she find it bitter! Scroll down to read the full story in the OP’s own words, as well as how the internet reacted. Once you’re done, tell us what you would have done, Pandas.
Parenting blogger Samantha Scroggin, the mastermind behind the witty 'Walking Outside in Slippers' blog, kindly shared her thoughts about generosity, sharing, and entitlement with Bored Panda. Scroll down to see what she told us.
Learning to share your toys is a wonderful thing... until someone starts taking advantage of your kindness
Image credits: wanderland.xyz (not the actual photo)
A parent shared how they reacted when an entitled mom started berating their kids at the pool
Image credits: Armin Rimoldi (not the actual photo)
Credits: DogLvrinVA
"I find teaching my kids to share is most effective when they experience the rewards of sharing. For example, when another child is so happy to play with a toy that belongs to my kid," mom and blogger Samantha told Bored Panda.
"My kids are not so enamored with sharing that I worry about them being taken advantage of. They have plenty, and can certainly share. If I thought my kids were being taken advantage of, I would step in and tell my kids it's ok for them to say no to sharing anymore in that moment."
She added: "And of course, some belongings are personal and shouldn't be shared. Like diaries, fragile items, and keepsakes."
Samantha said that it's important for parents to be aware of their privilege, as well as help their own children understand their own inherited privilege, too.
"I want my kids to work for what they are given, like allowance. I stress the value of hard work and the benefits of generosity."
Learning to share and being generous with your time, energy, attention, and resources, is generally a good way to go through life. And in an ideal world, there would be no need to even consider that someone might take advantage of you. However, we don’t live in an ideal world.
As the redditor’s story showed us, there are some extremely entitled people out there who demand that you share what you have with them. And yet, they’re unwilling to do the same. They go on to teach their kids that they can get anything they want by virtue of just existing. They don’t even have to put in any effort. Or be polite.
That’s the kind of thinking that the OP tried to shut down by taking the entitled mom’s book: she was acting hypocritical because she didn’t apply her own values to herself. Obviously, taking some stranger’s book is a bit unexpected, but it might have been necessary to set some boundaries and put an end to this nonsense. After all, nobody enjoys seeing their kids being berated. Especially if they did nothing wrong.
Though we’re optimistic about the fact that people can and do change, whatever their age, the fact remains that it’s easier to create good values and habits early on in life. What this means is that how parents raise their kids matters. A lot! The way to deal with potential entitlement is to nip it in the bud. Teach your children to be charitable instead of just expecting special treatment wherever they go.
Though everyone sometimes feels like they deserve to be treated special, things break down when you completely ignore this need in others. Everyone deserves to be treated with equal respect. When you demand special privileges, you may end up losing friends who no longer find your company fun.
That’s why it’s so important for parents to instill habits like humility and valuing others while their kids are still small. Otherwise, they might soon find that nobody wants to share their toys with their children no matter where they go—whether it’s the local pool or the neighborhood playground.
Here's how the internet reacted to the story. Some users shared their own experiences with similar situations
