“I have finally figured out why I was so mad at him, and why my heart was so full of hate. Passenger 2C, I’m sorry I said mean things. If I hadn’t been making fun of you, I would have doubled over in my seat sobbing.”
‘Passenger 2C stomped onto the plane. He should have worn a sign that read, ‘Do you know who I am?’ Did you really have to throw your foot on the armchair? Darn. So sorry.’
‘HE’S FINALLY ON THE PLANE! In desperation, we went to another airline desk to beg for help. She even sat on the floor with him. He was so frightened. He was in a wheelchair due to them medicating him.’
“This is my son, Leo. He has severe autism and the mental capacity of a 3-year-old. This airline refused to let him fly home because he was distressed when they wouldn’t let him have his doll. Police were called, which caused his meltdown.”
‘Hours shy of our wedding, at 5 months pregnant, I was assaulted. My fiancé sat in the fetal position, berating himself. ‘I don’t know what is wrong with me,’ he said, begging me to forgive him.’
“With 3 children, I filed for divorce. It meant food stamps. We all shared the same bed. I decided to do the craziest thing – leave a stable job to fly for the airlines. Single moms don’t do that, right? As I shut down the engine, I could hear my kids yelling, ‘Mommy!’ I was not broken.”
‘This mother was panicking. Her infant started wailing, disturbing sleeping passengers. You could see panic written all over her face. A lady even stood up to give her tips.’
“Then, the best thing happened. One of the crew members was an expert father. Within minutes in his arms, the baby was sleeping soundly. Ladies, a good husband is a good father. I had never seen anything more beautiful than this.”
‘The phone rang. ‘Heather, he was kite-surfing. They don’t know what happened. He’s dead.’ I slumped slowly to the floor, but my voice was calm. I was in denial.’
“I felt the seat next to me sink down. Opening my eyes, I saw a beautiful black woman elegantly dressed in a long skirt and pretty blouse. She simply opened her arms and held me, rocking back and forth. ‘It’s going to be okay. Poor baby. I know, I’m here,’ she said, holding me tight.”
‘I don’t know her name, but she was our hero on our flight home. Everyone on the plane was looking at us, annoyed by my son’s outburst.’
“He had a sudden meltdown and we couldn’t keep him calm no matter what we tried. This flight attendant asked if she could hold him. I warned her he might get aggressive and try to gouge her eyes.”
‘Were you in the military.’ I replied ‘yes.’ He said, ‘Afghanistan 2010?’ Surprised I slowly said, ‘yessss.’ He recognized me, my injuries, and my face. He never knew if I survived or not.’
“The pilot was there as I got out of my wheelchair to board my flight. He followed me and the flight attendant who volunteered to carry my bag. I fling myself into my seat. It was him. Honestly, I’m still shocked.”
‘An airline employee quietly asked about ‘my rash,’ and if I had a letter from a doctor stating it was ‘OK for me to fly.’ I explained to him it was a genetic skin condition.’
“He walked up to talk to the crew. He also Googled it during that time. He came back and said he apologized, but we ‘wouldn’t be able to fly,’ and we ‘had to get off the plane.’”
‘I met an older couple before our flight. They had the unfortunate chance of sitting next to us. Sofia is truly the devil’s child, and acted accordingly.’
“My children had never flown before. Sofia hates loud noises and is spooked easily. I was really worried.”
‘While waiting to board our plane, my daughter was being her inquisitive self, meeting and saying ‘Hi’ to everyone she could, until she walked up on this man.’
“This wasn’t a short, little exchange.”
