Miss Jane’s Big Adventure

Hey y’all, It feels good to sit a second, and catch up with all of you regulars, and to send out a hello to the new subscribers. I hope you’ll enjoy it here. Please feel free to hit reply and talk back to me. I love knowing more about you, and how I can bring value to your life. It may be a day or three before you hear from me, but I respond. (Right, old friends?

So, my speaking season has commenced and that means I’ve stacked up some travel stories for y’all.  The first one isn’t mine, but I have permission to tell it. Miss Jane, not her real name, was flying alone cross-country for a family event. The trip had been planned for months, and Miss Jane had spared no amount of worry over flying for the first time in many decades. She was understandably anxious about navigating busy terminals and connecting flights.

When her big trip finally arrived, Miss Jane’s daughter on this side of the adventure drove her to the airport, a day early. Miss Jane’s flight was scheduled for early morning, and she was nervous about her new-fangled digital ticket. What if her phone died? And her iPad? Miss Jane had made something similar to Custer’s last stand. She insisted she wouldn’t sleep a wink the night before without paper confirmation in hand. You know the saying right? If Mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy. Ruling given. Daughter complied. They secured Miss Jane’s paper tickets, prepaid her checked bag, discussed the workings of security and baggage claim, and settled into a nearby hotel room for a good night’s sleep.)

Check-in went without incident the next morning. Of course, Miss Jane had to go through security and make it to her gate alone, but her daughter had gone over and over what she could expect, and Miss Jane was supposed to text one last goodbye once she had boarded. They said their farewells.

All was going according to plan until her daughter heard an announcement over the airport’s intercom system. Someone had left their carry-on, iPad,  and cell phone at security. You guessed it. So did Miss Jane, and her daughter for that matter.

The daughter spent the next half-hour trying to figure out if her mother had been able to recover her belongings and make her flight. She was as anxious as Miss Jane had been when she finally received communication from her mom, via the recovered ipad.

“I made it through security,” Miss Jane typed, “but it shook me up, so a nice gentleman that wasn’t even flying walked with me to my gate. That’s when I realized I had left my carry-on and cell. They even called it over the speaker, but I already knew it was mine. I practically had to run to get it, but a nice lady with a training dog went ahead of me to be sure the plane waited.  Thankfully, a sweet girl at the counter helped me on the plane. Oh, and I’ve got a nice gentleman sitting beside me. But would you believer, on top of everything, the captain just came on and said we’re running a little late! I hope he doesn’t make me miss my next connection!”

So, here’s the thing. Miss Jane made that connection, but far as we know, she never did make the one between the drama of her lost items and the captain’s FYI.

Aside from how amusing this story is, I love sharing it because of the courage Miss Jane showed in the face of her fear about traveling alone. Today’s seniors have seen many changes over the course of their lifetime. Let’s remember to be as encouraging as possible while they navigate a world that must often feel more foreign that familiar.

Hugs,
Shellie

Hey folks! The audio link to this week’s podcast with special guest Jonathan Gibson, author of The Moon is Always Round can be found below. Of course, you can also find it on iTunes and your other podcast listening sites.

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