Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2007. This was another photo in a series of "surreys with a fringe on top" that I posted from our trip to Coronado, California. This bicycle was smaller and more manageable to pedal than the one in the previous photo. Yet still not exactly user friendly! But easier than the one for five people which felt like we were trying to pedal a car up a mountain rather than a bicycle! Mattie just loved the whole experience and he enjoyed being outdoors and in wide open spaces.
Quote of the day: The battles that count aren't the ones for gold medals. The struggles within yourself–the invisible battles inside all of us–that’s where it’s at. ~ Jesse Owens
I am safely back in Washington, DC tonight. My parents and I said our good-byes at the airport this morning, which of course is never easy. It is not a good feeling to leave a family member behind on either coast. But I would say the flight home was nothing like what I was expecting it to be!
It is funny how a distraction on a flight can truly side track you from the actual flight itself! While waiting to board the flight, I noticed an older adult sitting at the gate. He got up a couple of times and he appeared to be asking other passengers questions, but I did not make much out of it, other than I noted it! As we boarded I lost track of him for a while, until he boarded the plane at the last few minutes and he sat right next to me. He came on with a big piece of luggage and did not know what to do with it. So the flight attendant put it in first class and then he sat next to me and began talking to my other seat mate by the window. He talked her ear off for a good hour! Which I wasn't thrilled about because I really do not like hearing any talking while flying... remember I do NOT like to fly in general!
But after he tired out my seat mate, he moved onto me! Keep in mind at that point, I had no idea the extent of the situation at hand because I wasn't really engaged or paying attention. However, once I began talking to Roger, I quickly surmised that Roger is 81 and has dementia and really should NOT be traveling alone! Roger couldn't keep track of his money, passport, and his boarding passes. It turns out Roger missed his first flight to Newark, which is why they put him on my flight. How did he miss his flight? Well he was sitting in the terminal but did not hear the PA system announce his flight, so it took off without him! He was literally sitting there at the gate and it left without him! The problem was Roger wasn't doing domestic travel, his final destination was Scotland and worse the airline did not know of his condition so NO one was escorting him from plane to plane. It was a nightmare and truly heart breaking to see.
I not only got to know Roger, but I got to know Margaret, my other seat mate from Brisbane, Australia. Another kind soul who helped me help Roger. Together we brainstormed how we were going to get Roger to his final destination, which wasn't easy because once he landed in Dulles at 9pm, he had to catch his next flight at 9:50pm to London! Assuming he made that, then he had a third flight from London to Scotland to catch! Roger was a sweet man but like a child, unable to make decisions and in need of direction and guidance. In between making travel arrangements for Roger, I got to hear about his life, how he lived in Alaska, California, and even Iran. He did building contracts in each of these places for the Government. He led a fascinating life and had very interesting experiences, for the parts he remembered. He wanted to know about my life and whether it is my personality or my training, like all mental health professionals I usually share bits and pieces but NOT much about myself. Nonetheless, he was intrigued to know that I was a therapist and he noticed my wedding ring and said Peter was a lucky man because he kept saying that he felt very cared for and landed up sitting in the right row of the airplane! So he was wise in many ways and intuitive, because he had the sense to know that not everyone around him would be caring for him like me!
When the plane landed, I stayed with Roger to make sure that the flight attendants knew that I was on his case. In fact I flagged the purser in flight and ordered a wheelchair for Roger to meet him at Dulles to take him from the gate of our flight to the gate of his next flight. Since I suspected where our domestic flight landed would be a completely different terminal from where his International flight would be taking off from (which was correct!) and there would be NO WAY he would make that connection in 50 minutes! While I was waiting on the plane with him, I called his friend in California. The only phone number he literally had in his wallet (he had NO PHONE with him!!). I asked his friend for the phone number of his daughter in Scotland and fortunately she had it! From that, I literally called Scotland and spoke to Roger's family to let them know that Roger missed his flight and to give them all his new information and to let them know the status of what was going on!
When I got off the phone, Roger was out of the plane bathroom by this point and retrieved his luggage. I then spoke to the flight attendants with Roger right by my side while waiting for the wheelchair. The purser asked me if I had seen what was going on in the back of the plane during the flight! I said NO because I was too busy in the front of the plane. She then continued to tell me the story about the passenger with a golden retriever. When passengers were deplaning, I did see one leave with a golden retriever, but I assumed she had issues with vision. Bad assumption on my part. The passenger has anxiety issues and literally this dog was sitting on the passenger's lap for the entire flight to aid with these issues. Now I am the queen of anxiety but frankly I am not sure if I could handle being on a flight with a golden retriever right next to me on someone's lap! Did you know this could even happen on a plane?!!
The purser told me she sees sad sights like Roger every day on her job and they are just heart breaking. Yet when she sees people like me who care for fellow passengers it restores her faith and hope in people. The purser and flight attendants told me to leave after I waited thirty minutes, the plane was totally empty by that point. They felt they had it under control, after I explained the extent of the problem and the mental confusion. When I told Roger that I was leaving and that he could trust these ladies to get him to his next destination, he stood up and gave me a big hug and thanked me for being so kind to him and caring. Not how I thought coming home was going to be like, but I am quite sure I won't be forgetting Roger any time soon or how wonderful the flight attendants on United Airlines were when I brought all of this to their attention tonight!
Meanwhile, as soon as I landed Peter expected to see me right away! But when I landed I text messaged him and told him about Roger. Peter is used to me by now. I gather my story about Roger did not surprise him in the least and he knew I had to do what I thought was right to do! Of course that caused me to be at the airport an extra hour than I had to be and my desire to help people impacts others. But Peter knows after all these years with me, this is not something he is going to change about me. Perhaps it is one of the things one finds endearing, I don't know!
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