Everyone loves to say that today’s youth are rude, lazy, disrespectful to elders, and only think of themselves.

But recently, I learned: sometimes it’s more important to respect yourself than to give in to others’ complaints — especially when people take advantage of your kindness.

I gave up my lower bunk on the train to a woman with a child, but soon regretted my good deed.

I was on my way home after a grueling exam session.

I had passed all my finals, barely slept, and wanted just one thing — to get some proper sleep during the trip.

I had specifically bought a ticket for a lower bunk so I could lie down comfortably and avoid the hassle of the upper bunk.

I got on the train, settled in, and was already starting to drift off when a woman in her forties entered the compartment with a boy who looked to be no older than seven.

She looked tired but determined.

Once she unpacked her things, it turned out they only had tickets for an upper bunk.

She sat across from me and immediately started explaining how miserable she was — her back hurt, her son was restless, and being on the top bunk with a child would be impossible.

She asked me to give up my spot.

I felt sorry for her. I mean, a mother with a kid and a bad back?

I decided to help: I climbed up to the upper bunk and tried to fall asleep.

But that didn’t go well.

The boy sprawled out on the lower bunk and started tossing and turning nonstop, kicking the mattress and the metal frame, making the whole thing shake and vibrate.

On top of that, he kept singing some annoying tune from a video game and would not stop talking.

At first, I endured it. Then, gathering my strength, I politely asked the woman to calm her son down.

— “Why are you being so dramatic?” she replied with tired irritation. “He’s just a child!”

But the child only got more hyper — started running up and down the train car, blasting cartoons on his phone, laughing, jumping. At that point, sleep was no longer an option.

That’s when I realized I’d had enough — and did something I don’t regret at all.

Don’t you dare say young people don’t respect adults

I climbed down from the upper bunk and went to the conductor.

I calmly explained — without raising my voice — that my ticket was for the lower bunk, and although I gave it up voluntarily, I could no longer rest because the woman refused to control her child.

The conductor came into the compartment, checked the tickets, looked at the woman, and said firmly:

— “Ma’am, your ticket is for the upper bunk. Please take your assigned places.”

The woman tried to argue, but the conductor wouldn’t budge.

In the end, she sighed, climbed up with her son, and I finally lay down on my lower bunk again.

For the first time in days, I fell asleep peacefully — with no guilt and no pity.

Since then, I’ve made a firm decision: never again will I sacrifice my own comfort for those who don’t know how to respect others’ effort or peace.