My Beautiful Angel

Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.  

~Mark Twain

I experienced several interesting moments during my recent trip to the state of Washington to visit the love of my life, Sharon, and her family. I previously shared, in my blog titled "Perspective", the story of the misfortunate adventure during my return flight home. That experience left me thinking about how many people can share the same experience, at the same time, and still have a different perspective on its significance in the spectrum of life. However, before I even got on board the flight to return home, I witnessed a very random and selfless act of kindness that showed me the depth of one woman’s heart and character. Witnessing this simple kind act, not only made me think about how simple acts of kindness should be common place in our world, it also made my love for Sharon grow a little bit more.

It was cold and raining on the day my flight was departing Seattle’s Sea-Tac Airport….big surprise. Of course to us desert “rats” anything below 60 degrees requires an extra layer of clothing. On this day, though, I was not feeling well. My head was congested, I had been coughing all night and the aches of the Flu were starting to set in. So when Sharon and I got to the airport, 2 hours before my flight was scheduled to depart, we hustled to get out of the parking garage and inside to the warmth of the terminal. When we approached the Southwest Airlines ticket counter there was a very long line of anxious people winding through the maze of ropes waiting for their turn to check luggage and acquire their boarding passes. When we both saw this we looked at each other and then I glanced outside to see that there were all but 2-3 couples waiting in line at the SWA curb-side check-in. I looked at Sharon and she knew right away what I was thinking. She smiled at me as we strolled outside to wait in the much-shorter line. After about…oh 30 seconds….it was apparent that there was a reason this line was so short…it was COLD and WINDY!!...But we huddled together and waited our turn patiently. As we were standing there I noticed a woman who was struggling with a large suitcase, a smaller bag and an infant in a car-seat. Before I could even turn to Sharon and say a word, she left my side and rushed to assist this poor woman. There were plenty of other people standing within 6 feet of this woman, including several SWA employees. But this amazing woman…who was with ME(big smile)…was the first to take action. She carefully helped her around the small crowd on the curb-side, and then disappeared into the terminal assisting her the entire way. I have no idea how far she helped her; I couldn't see where she helped this woman too. All I know is when Sharon returned to my side…she hugged my arm and I gave her a smile and she simply stated “What? I have been there before; I know what that is like.”

In the past, I have told her that she is my beautiful angel. That day, I realized, she was also an angel to a stranger. A woman she will probably never see again. In that moment, I felt my love for her grow a little bit more.

Perspective

This past weekend I got to spend 3 AWESOME days in the Pacific Northwest…OK the rain and the cold did make me sick. However, I did get to spend some well needed quality time with the woman I love and her beautiful family. I also got to reconnect with a great friend John Wilkinson and his family. I flew home on Monday which is when Murphy, and his ridiculous law, decided to rear his ugly head. My flight was scheduled to arrive in Phoenix at 3:30pm, which would have given me about 2 hours to get to work and change into my work clothes before I began my shift at FedEx. About an hour into the flight one of the flight attendants came over the intercom and made the following announcement, “If there is a doctor, or anyone with medical training on board please let us know by pressing your flight attendant call button!”….never a good thing. As it turns out, one of the passengers was having a heart attack and our flight was about to be forced to make an emergency stop in Idaho. I knew at that moment I was probably not going to make it to work on time. What surprised me, though, was the selfish and shallow attitude of some of the passengers. It is interesting to me how many people can experience the same incident, at the same time, and each individual may react to it differently.

After several of the passengers responded to the request, the discussions and focus of everyone on board the airplane shifted from the idle chit-chat of a normal flight to that of concern for the passenger who was having the heart attack. After about 30 minutes the pilot announced over the intercom that we would be making an emergency landing in Idaho so that the sick passenger could get the proper medical attention. Once on the ground the medical personnel boarded the airplane and escorted the sick passenger off the plane. He was able to walk off of the plane and was eventually taken to a hospital. I was sitting there thinking about this man and his poor family, when this woman approached the front of the airplane to inquire about her connecting flight in Phoenix. Obviously, there was much going on in the front of the plane. The pilot had just announced that we would be on the ground for about 30 min for an aircraft inspection. The inspection was necessary because we had landed “overweight”. When a flight is prepared, the weight of the airplane has to be taken into consideration upon the landing. The amount of fuel is calculated not only to make sure there is enough to get the plane to its next destination, but to also make sure enough is burned off in flight so that the plane is not “overweight” upon landing. Because we landed before our scheduled destination, the plane needed to be inspected to make sure there wasn’t any damage from landing “overweight”, completely understandable and necessary. But some of the passengers just seemed to be annoyed by this further delay. One woman even looked at me and said, “Just great! I am supposed to be on a connecting flight in Phoenix and if we have any more delays I don’t see how I am going to make it!”….REALLY!? Someone just had a heart attack and that’s all you can think about?...Now, I get it. Travel can be frustrating when the airlines don’t make scheduled arrival times and lose luggage and etc., but isn’t this a situation where people could show SOME compassion? We weren’t delayed because of the airlines. ALL of our plans had been altered because of this poor man who just had a heart attack! It is just sad that people cannot accept that shit happens! My grandmother once told me, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”

A representative from the airlines came on board our flight and discussed connecting flight information with some of the more impatient passengers. They even went so far as to take a few of the passengers off the plane and get them other flights out of Idaho so they could make their connection through another airline. Well done Southwest Airlines.

Once we were back in the air, the flight attendants made the round through the cabin discussing information with those passengers who were still going to make their connecting flights once in Phoenix. All the while, I am sitting patiently in my seat, sick, back sore, thinking I would have about 20 minutes once we landed to get my luggage at baggage claim, catch a shuttle to work and change in time for work…realizing I was not going to make it to work on time…I took a deep breath and thought, once again, about the poor man and his family. I was going to be late for work, big deal. I guess, in the end, it is all about perspective.

I am not perfect

I am not perfect. I don’t strive to be so.

I have a difficult time remembering names. When I write, I don’t punctuate correctly. I abuse the tense of verbs , frequently. Often, when people quote movies, I have no idea what movie they are quoting, even though I may have seen THAT movie 20 times! I get hurt easily because I bear my heart to the world. I am quick to trust people and slow to learn not to. I forget birthdays and anniversaries. I am TERRIBLE with paperwork. I am clumsy. I have a hard time remembering names. I would rather take a nap then clean my apartment. I would rather take a nap then do the dishes. I would rather just take a nap!....I procrastinate. I don’t check my mail everyday and I am pretty sure my mailman thinks I am always on vacation. My socks are in a basket and not even close to being paired nice and neat. I NEVER fold my underwear…it’s UNDERWEAR! I wait until I HAVE to do laundry before getting started on it. I clean and dust and vacuum when it HAS to be done. I will allow dishes to pile up in the kitchen sink until there are enough to justify running the dishwasher. I have no idea what is in the food containers that have been sitting in the back of my fridge for…months? I only strive to live my life one day at a time.

I live everyday allowing the energy of love to flow through me as I interact with people in my life. I want everyone who crosses my path to feel good…no…feel better after talking with me. This is who I am, despite all of my imperfections, I like me.