You see the title, right? When you hear someone utter those words, what is the first thing you do? Panic! When we have uncertain situations, our brains automatically interpret uncertainty as danger. Twenty-four hours before my flight home from Australia it was time to check in. But I wasn’t able to, and I wasn’t sure why. This immediately threw me into a bit of worry because here I am in this country, my very first international trip, and I am over 8000 miles from home, and I can’t check in. What the heck is happening?
I reached out to some people I know who have traveled overseas before and they assured me that I would be fine. I asked my friend to please get me to the airport by 9am even though my flight wasn’t leaving until 1:15pm. If you know me at all you know I’m always at the airport 2 hours early, but this time I wanted to get there to secure my check in.
I got to the airport and when I finally checked in all was well. Then I get to the security check. The agents are quite stern in their approach to travelers, and I was taken back a little bit. As soon as I made it through the security check, I was flagged for a random check. My immediate thought was, oh they want to pat me down and check my hair because I’m wearing it in an Afro, its natural state. Actually, they wanted to check my clothes to make sure I didn’t have any traces of explosives. After brushing my pockets and legs with their gadget I was able to continue on. Even though I didn’t have anything they were looking for, my heart skipped a beat for a brief moment.
So many thoughts raced through my mind in what felt like 5 minutes but was really only forty-five seconds. All I wanted to do was get to the gate and board my plane. Australia had been good, but I was ready to get back home.
Finally, I made it to my gate and now it was time to wait. After 3 1/2 hours, it was finally time to board. The agent checked my passport and then said, “security check.” All I could think was, dang what is going on? I need to get back home to my family. It amazes me how our minds will immediately go straight to negative scenarios. I was asked to take off my shoes, pull out my laptop and they used this wand type stick to check for something on my person and in my backpack while another agent jotted my information down in what appeared to be a government ledger book. When the agent was done with me, he said, “you are clear to board, ma’am, have a safe flight,” I let out a sigh of relief. I was joyfully walking down the pathway to board my flight.
I am sharing this with you to remind you to keep your mind fixed on the positives all around you. It takes an actual effort to remain calm in a situation that may warrant unrest. Did I have a reason to panic? Maybe in your eyes no, but to me I had a brief bout with worry. What I failed to do in the moment was to keep my mind fixed on the above. The bible says in Isaiah 26:3, you our God, will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is centered on you and who puts his trust in the you. All I had to do was center my mind. And that is all you have to do if and when you start to panic in a situation that doesn't warrant it. Focus on what you can control, that is your emotions, and know that everything will be alright.
Sending you love, light and positive vibes,
Cassie K.
"Always remember to LIVE life to the fullest, to LAUGH at everything and to LOVE unconditionally!"
So lovely to have you stay, very brave venturing so far xx