a peculiar trip

A peculiar thing happened to me on a recent trip. I was scheduled to fly from Phoenix to NY by way of Chicago, and I ended up flying from Miami to Hartford instead!

My trip began pretty regularly at first, with a fairly uneventful flight from Phoenix to Chicago. It was in Chicago where the excitement began. You see, my flight to NYC was delayed somewhat due to “unforeseen” circumstances. So I tried – and succeeded – in changing my itinerary to travel on another flight to NY, which, after spending over three hours on the tarmac was canceled due to inclement weather in the greater NY area.

The good folks at American Airlines assured me that they were looking out for my wellbeing, and had in fact rescheduled me on yet another flight that would get me in to NY in the late afternoon on – get this – the next day! In fact, they had scheduled me for a flight that would leave Chicago at 7:00am to Dallas, where I would then catch a connection to NY!

To say that I was not happy, would be an understatement. But I also realized that this was not the fault of the airline, in fact, all flights leaving from Chicago to the NY area on that particular Wednesday afternoon, had been grounded due to the dangerous storms in the greater NY area. I also realized, that this too, is for the good, and that divine plan required me to deal with whatever role G-d had in store for me even if it entailed an extra few hours (or days) in Chicago.

At some point, I decided to try my luck once more, and approached a gate agent and asked if he would be able help, and mentioned to him, that perhaps, he would be able to get me on to a flight that would head to Hartford, CT instead.  He was certainly helpful, but not hopeful that he would succeed. In fact, he did tell me how lucky I was to be on a flight for the next day, as there were many others, that would be waiting a number of days, to reach their destination.

But he took a look, and informed me that the latest flight with American Airlines to get into Hartford, CT, was a flight from Miami, FL that would arrive in Hartford at 12:00AM. But, he cautioned me, there was no guarantee that any flights would be heading to Hartford, and I could very well be stuck in Miami for the night; so what would you prefer, a night in Chicago or a night in Miami he asked?

What a question; Miami of course.  And this is how I ended up as the final passenger on an American Airlines flight from Chicago to Miami.

 My seatmate, it turns out, was a Jewish lady.  A scion of a famous Rabbinic family, renowned for their diligence and commitment to Torah study and its dissemination.  It seemed (based on external appearances) that she was not of the same stock as her family pedigree; -- though she was immensely proud of her lineage and heritage. It also turned out that she knew an aunt of mine, and had at one time been close enough to my aunt that she served as an “escort” or perhaps it was "bridesmaid" for my aunt and uncle at their Chuppah (wedding) ceremony.

The journey ended up being a fascinating mix of Jewish geography, philosophy and of course Torah, as the three hours of travel time flew by! It was a journey that, I would like to believe, was the mysterious plan of our divine creator -- to be in that place at that time, to lift up (and to be lifted by) another soul in its respective journey.

Later, while I was flying from Miami to Hartford (I did catch the connection after all, and the flight was cleared to go..), I reflected upon my day, that this was no ordinary journey, for on this particular trip, the journey itself was really the destination!

Sometimes, the experiences we call “journeys” are really destinations.  And conversely, the destinations are really journeys. This is G-d's way of guding us in our journey of life too. Our task is to be mindful of this at all times.