Aaaargh! I've been caught on the hop by a change of blog day and because I've been away from my desk most of today, the time is fast running out for me to get this post ready to go live.... Which means I have nothing planned and haven't been able to compose a draft copy and tweak it multiple times before I dare publish it. So to borrow JM's phrasing, today I'm barnstorming--that is, writing this by the seat of my pants.However, all is not lost, dear readers. If you do crave a post about actual writing processes, check out the "Challenge yourself if you can" post on my website. For now, since time is off the essence, I'm going to do the unheard of and go for short'n'sweet on Writers Gone Wild. And for me, that's gonna be a challenge. I'm a why-use-one-word-when-you-can-elaborate-with-a-sentence-or-even-a-paragraph! kinda girl.
The topic for today is airports. Specifically, getting all emotional at airports.
So hands up if you've ever cried at an airport before? Be honest now.
I have. Because airports can be the absolute worst places. And the absolute best.
Last year, my Y7 daughter (then 11 years old) was chosen to go on a school trip to Himeji, Japan. And as I wasn't one of the parents chosen to go along, she was going on her own. Well, not on her own, because she'd be part of a group of kids with parent and teacher supervision, but she wasn't going with me or her dad. And I was okay with that. Or so I thought.
We got to the airport, met up with her group and her parent supervisor, and then, we were pretty much superfluous. In fact, I got the distinct feeling the adults just wanted us gone so they could get on with things without all us hangers on complicating matters and upsetting the kids. Consequently, they hustled the kids through the departure gates in double quick time--possibly to preempt the inevitable tears.
And as we all know, saying goodbye to someone you love sucks. My baby had just walked through the departure gates on the way to the biggest adventure of her young life...and I wasn't gonna be a part of it.
Sure, I was excited for her, thrilled to bits and beyond at this amazing opportunity which had been offered to her. She was getting the chance to experience Japanese culture by living with a host family. She'd get to visit Hiroshima, travel on the shinkansen (bullet train), visit Japanese schools, participate in Himeji's summer festival. It was a chance of a lifetime for her....and here I was, scared witless that some harm would befall her and I wouldn't be there.
I mean, what if she got left behind on the platform because she didn't make it aboard the shinkansen in time? What if she got lost on one of the trips? What if she didn't get on with her host family? What if they didn't speak any English and she got sick?
So when she turned to wave goodbye one last time before disappearing from view, I was miserable and teary-eyed and trying my best not to burst into tears. I'd forgotten just how awful airports can be.
Now picking people up from airports, that's a whole 'nother story. I absolutely love it! I always get there early, just so I can find a prime spot to sit and watch all the travellers arriving. It's at airports that my secret people-watching fetish really kicks in. I surreptitiously observe faces, make up little stories about who they might be meeting and what their relationship with that person might be. Oh, the stories I've invented!
And the absolute best part about airport arrivals is observing that special moment when someone walks through those gates, cranes their neck looking for the person who's supposed to be meeting them and....their gazes lock. It's the pure, unadulterated joy captured on their faces that gets me every time and I can't help but reach for my hankie and have a discreet dab of my eyes.
Of course, in the case of my daughter arriving back after 2 weeks away, it was tears of joy and shock. How could she have grown up so much in only 2 weeks? Her experiences had changed her, matured her. And I have to admit, as much as I'd loved to have been along for the ride, it was best for her to go without me. She discovered just how independent she could be and that newfound confidence just shone in her face.
I wonder what people thought when they observed my face as I spotted my daughter walking through those gates?
I wonder what they thought when they saw hers?
There's been heaps of airport memories in my life so far. My husband used to be in the airforce so there were plenty of tearful departures and tearful arrivals. And then there was the time my mother flew in to surprise me for my 30th birthday. I sure entertained people with my reaction on that particular day!
Want to share your airport stories? I'd love to hear them.
:-)
Maree
8 comments:
I could tell you some stories Maree. I still work there two mornings a week and absolutely live it.
The only time I remember crying is when my husband came home from Iraq. When he was in the Marines, we'd meet up on base, but when he was doing contract work, I picked him up from a 'regular' airport. Omg, I bawled the first time I picked him up. I thought I'd been so strong the past 5 months but when I saw his handsome face, I lost it ;)
For me, my airport stories are full of problems, like the time I flew from Tucson to Columbus, Ohio with a 3-month-old baby and a 2-year-old toddler carrying a diaper bag, purse and baby carrier. The plane laid over at O'Hare for three hours and no one -- NO ONE -- offered to help me get from point A to point B while I wrestled kids and baggage, got them breakfast and maneuvered the rolling walkway.
About the only good time I remember was getting off the plane wearing a brand new outfit in high-heeled white sandals and walking up to my father who didn't recognize his 17-year-old daughter had grown up even though he'd just seen me a few days before. That was priceless.
Mine's similar to yours, Maree. When I sent my 13 year old on a class trip to Germany, I nearly fell apart as I hugged her goodbye. Every doom and gloom scenario a mother could possibly imagine flashed through my mind as she disappeared into the jetway. :(
But then, I cried at Bambi, too.
JM...I hear you about flying cross country alone with infants. Yikes...Did that with mine twice...all three of them. Yikes. Pass me the valium, I feel a panic attack coming on just thinking of it. :)
Oh heck, my eyes water watching certain TV ads so airports are a serious danger zone for me. Whenever I wait for people to arrive I start to get choked up just watching other arrivals. Especially when you see grandparents arriving and seeing their grandbabies for the first time, or couples who are clearly in love (young or old.) Saying goodbye is a shocker for me. I prefer to drop people at the door and drive away, I cannot stand long drawn out goodbyes because they're just so harrowing. When my youngest when on a sport development tour to Australia last year the school had the right idea. We dropped the kids off at the school bus bay, where a coach awaited them to take them to the airport and they were loaded on that bus faster than we could give them a hug and say goodbye. Same when they arrived home. A luxury coach picked them up at the airport and we collected them from school. Being one of *those* emotional parents, I can fully understand and appreciate the logic behind the school's decision to do that. So much easier on everyone, especially the teachers who were supervising the kids.
Jean, let's you and I chat over coffee at the next conference and you can tell me your airport stories.
Katie, you're making me sniffle just thinking about you seeing your husband after 5 months! And I thought 6 weeks was unbearable.
JM & Liane, your kiddie travelling stories are uncomfortably familiar! Me pregnant with #2, coping with 12month old #1 and trying to lug carseat, pram, nappy bag, my own luggage thru Customs...where was the assistance?
JM, would love to have seen your father's face! OMG, too priceless for words :-)
Liane & Yvonne, glad to know I'm not the only one who cries at movies and tv ads. I think it started when I first watched ET. And it's never stopped!
Been in a lot of airports and never get over the feeling that when I get on a plane, some adventure awaits. Being a writer, I observe the people there and am amazed at some of the things I learn about human nature, good and bad. People in airports make me wonder...what if?
Cameo, that's great! "What if?" Oh, the opportunities that await us when we're about to board. Sigh. Sooo gotta get my passport renewed.
Frankly, as long as I'm not gonna be living "Lost", I'm long due an overseas adventure!
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