A Journey We Were Unsure About

The next experience that stands out for me is when we travelled to Ernakulam for a job interview. This was for my wife, and we decided to take our son along with us. He was close to one year old at the time.

There were quite a few challenges to manage. He was not used to travelling much, and travelling by plane was something we knew would be a big challenge. Still, we felt we should try.

We prepared ourselves as much as we could. We packed all the essentials he would need, from diapers to extra towels. We carried wipes as well, knowing they would come in handy during emergencies.

Fortunately, airports had breastfeeding areas, which made things much easier. He was able to feed properly, and that helped keep him calm.

Our biggest concern was the flight. We were worried about how he would react during takeoff and landing. To our surprise, he appeared completely fine. Even during the flight, which was barely forty minutes, he was calm and composed. Honestly, we felt quite lucky.

Illustration of travelling with a one year old

After landing and during the journey to the hotel, there were a few minor instances of discomfort, but overall, he handled it well. Looking back, we were surprised at how smoothly things went.

The hotel stay was also largely comfortable. I do remember that he took some time to fall asleep that night. Perhaps it was because of the new surroundings and the unfamiliar situation. But eventually, he did settle down.

The real challenge came the next day, when it was time for the interview.

A large number of candidates had applied for the post, and we knew the process would take time. She was called into the hospital along with the others at around ten in the morning, just for the proceedings to begin.

Our son was used to having his mother around most of the time, so this was a big challenge for me. I managed him reasonably well for the first thirty minutes or so. After that, he began to show signs of discomfort.

At that point, I had no one to turn to for help.

Family members had offered to help us during the journey. I was the one who declined, saying that it was good for parents to gain this kind of experience. Standing there alone with my increasingly restless child, I remember thinking that I may have been a little too confident.

Since she was inside the hospital and the process had only just begun, it was difficult to call her out for help. So I did the only thing I could think of. I gave him the food items we had brought specially for him. He ate them, and thankfully, his crying reduced.

After that, I started taking him around the place. I showed him the vehicles outside, birds flying, people moving about, anything that might distract him. This worked for a while, and I was able to manage him like that.

Fortunately, she was able to come out in between. The moment he saw her, he almost jumped out of my hands. She quickly attended to his needs.

That is when she told me that there was a facility inside where she could take care of him while waiting for her interview to be called. A friend of hers who was already working there had agreed to help.

I cannot describe the relief I felt at that moment. By then, almost three hours had passed, and he was getting really cranky.

After that, things became much smoother. When it was time for the interview, she handed him back to me. The interview itself went well, and the entire process turned out to be far less stressful for our son than we had expected. A large part of that was due to the help we received from her friend.

The journey back was similar to the onward journey. Our son remained mostly calm and composed. Looking back now, we actually enjoyed the entire experience together.