Not too long ago, my daughter went to Hawaii to visit a childhood friend. It was tough as I left her at the airport. This was the first time she was flying alone.
She had made all of the arrangements. I was so proud of her, she didn't ask for my help in any part of the process. The only information she gave me was that she was leaving on a Wednesday and coming home the following Tuesday.
Easy enough.
It was a long week for me as this was the first time she had gone out of the state without parental supervision. She would check in occasionally with a text to comfort my heart...
"Mom, I jst jmped off a cliff! It was awsme, I lve u"
"u what? I'm so happy u r hving fun"
In my opinion I would have been much happier if she would have said something like,
" Mom, just lazing around on the beach reading a book. Having the time of my life!"
Now that's a comforting text!
It's Monday night and I send her a little text confirming the time of her arrival...
" What time does your plane land?"
"7 am. So sorry, thanks mom."
" No prob, see you then. Lve u"
I was pretty proud at how my texting capabilities had improved over the past week.
(You must know that the reason she said sorry in regards to the time of her arrival is because I had to get up at 3:30 in the morning to get to the airport on time.)
My niece was kind enough to make the drive with me, so off we went. This is where the real story begins.
The flight was delayed just a bit. We waited anxiously to see her and hear all about the trip.
Finally! 7:25 am--passengers are coming into the terminal. Each of them looking nice and tan with big smiles on their faces. One by one, they passed by. Where is Britt?
"Michelle, we must have missed her, let's go to the baggage claim area"
7:45 am.
No sign of Brittany, no unclaimed bags, and no text. We called her only to get her voice mail.
Can I just say how incredibly angry I was when the woman at the front desk would not check the passenger list?
"If she isn't a minor, we cannot give you any information."
This is never the right thing to say to a mother!
8:15 am.
Okay, Lord, don't let me freak out here. Maybe she decided to stay another day. But why didn't she call me?
My heart is now beating fast and I am extremely frustrated.
"Michelle, give me your phone!" I must have dialed ten times and finally...
"H-e-l-l-o"
"Where are you!"
"I'm sleeping, why are you yelling at me?"
"I'm not yelling at you! I'm worried!"
" Why?"
"We are at the airport waiting for you!"
"O my gosh mom, I don't get in til tomorrow morning"
I could hardly talk through my tears.
"You told me you came home Tuesday."
"Mom, I leave for home Tuesday night, but my plane lands Wednesday morning."
"Go back to sleep hon, I'll see you in the morning."
As a parent, I am sure you can just imagine how many unspoken thoughts went through my head. Do you want to know the best part? I had to do it all over again the next morning! I must love getting up early in the morning and going on five hour round-trip drives. My husband and son just laughed and said I had another Lucy moment. ( I have these a lot.)
It's Wednesday night all is calm, Britt is home. My son is getting ready to go to bed. After he gives his dad a hug, he looks at me. He just couldn't resist:
"Hey mom."
"Hey what?"
"Don't go to the airport in the morning, Britt's home." "Thanks J."
"Britt, I don't care if you are fifty, If I am responsible for picking you up, I get a copy of the itinerary!"
" Yes, mom."
And so concludes another ordinary day in the Ortiz household. Thanks for reading.
(C) Teresa Ortiz
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