My sister, Lori, sent the following article to me today with the note: "This reminded me of you". I am touched and flattered, and thankful. The passage at the start of the article is on my blog home page as well as part of my bio on Facebook. This passage plus others from Philippians 4 are requested for my funeral service. And, I have, in fact, made friends with people at the airports when traveling, one who is now a FB friend and another via e-mail. It's really not that hard! Please enjoy this from Lori to me:
CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE!
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Finally,
beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever
is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any
excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these
things. Philippians 4:8
"Last weekend, I was
stranded in Detroit overnight, having missed a connecting flight. No,
it wasn't caused by the giant snow storm on the East Coast. It was a
case of simple human error. (I'm quick to point out that I am one of those
mere mortals that is sometimes responsible for human error.) Anxiety
and upset was contagious. Everyone was yearning to be on their way
toward their destination. Information wasn't timely or reliable.
Many of us sprinted to the gate of our next flight, hoping against hope that
the plane would still be there ... and it wasn't. Promised gate agents
weren't there to smooth changes and arrangements. All were tired and
hungry. It was a recipe for emotional disaster. It didn't appear
to be a Philippians 4:8 moment!
I'd been given a gift
that brought out my best self, a seat mate on the flight from Buffalo to
Detroit, who was peaceful, accepting, and calm. That, too, was
contagious.
So, I took a deep
breath and made a choice: I was not going to allow any airline to pull me off
course from being my best self. Having no control over anything else -
flights, delays, gate changes, missing airline representatives - I did have
control over just one thing - my attitude. I chose to be my best self.
(I'm not proud of
this, but I haven't always made that choice. I have gone to a dark
place, expressing anger at people who had not caused the situation and
couldn't remedy it. This time, I wanted to do it differently.
Kids and others were watching. I wear a cross ... and I wanted to provide
some evidence that I strive to follow the One who went to the cross for me.)
I connected with a
delightful, if shivering, group of fellow travelers, who were waiting for a
hotel shuttle. I observed a young man unzip his suitcase and give a
young woman he didn't know, who was flying from South Carolina to LA, clad in
a light cotton sweater, his heavy hooded sweatshirt. I saw others
persuade an elderly Jewish woman that it was perfectly safe to ride with our
delightful Arab van driver. Next morning, I watched people, quiet and
friendly, ready for the very early van ride back to the airport after just a
few hours of sleep.
Then, it was my
turn. In the airport, I got to reassure and calm a frantic young mom,
already away from her little kids and husband for a week, that all will be
well. She bought me coffee and we became friends, who could laugh when
our gate changed, not once or twice or thrice, but four times, before we
actually took off on time. New friend, coffee, laughter, and a warm
memory - that was the gift I received for choosing to focus on what was good
in our world that morning."
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