Angels In uniform

What a miserable night! I tossed and turned, checking the clock several times an hour. At four in the morning, I gave into my anxiety and got out of bed. It was time to get ready anyway. My plane flight would leave Memphis in a matter of hours.

         The sun was just peeking over the horizon when my husband and I arrived at the airport. We joined the fray of humanity going through security, handing over our identification to be scanned.

         “Ma’am, I can’t let you through,” the TSA agent said to me. “It’s your birthday. Your ticket doesn’t match your driver’s license.

         I cut my eyes at my spouse. He bought the tickets. How could he mistype my birth date?

         The agent pointed to the lobby. “You need to go back to the Delta Airlines desk. They’ll have to issue a new ticket.”

         I picked up my bag and checked my watch. The possibility of missing the plane made my heart race. With my husband by my side, we made our way out to the lobby.

         “Sorry,” my husband mumbled. “Don’t know how I could make such a mistake.”

         His apology was sincere, but without having a cup of coffee yet I remained silent. All I could think about was getting on the flight to attend a family funeral. We made our way to the airline counter just as my husband’s phone started to beep.

         “Oh no. They’ve cancelled our flight,” he said.

         My throat tightened. This was turning into a nightmare. Could the day possibly get any worse?

         As if on cue, a sea of people began lining up behind us, each one glued to the screen in their hand. I saw the frustration clouding every face and realized they had just learned about the cancellation.

         A Delta employee with the name Beverly pinned to her uniform motioned us over to her. She looked incredibly put together for 6:50 in the morning. “May I help you?” she asked.

         “Yes. we have two problems,” I said. “My birthday is incorrect on my ticket and our flight has been cancelled.”

         “Let’s see what I can do,” she soothed, her fingers flying over her keyboard. “Okay, your birthday is all fixed, but the flight to Atlanta is a bit tougher. How flexible are your plans?”

         “They’re not. We’re headed to a family funeral.” I said, fighting back tears.

         Her head whipped up and she fixed her gaze on me. “Did you say a funeral?”

         I nodded, too choked with exhaustion and emotion to speak.

         “That does it. You’re getting on the next plane,” she said. “From now on you're

my special customers. It’s a good thing your birthday was wrong. Now I can help you before all the seats on the midmorning flight are taken by the customers waiting behind you.”

         To my surprise, she then handed us our new tickets and walked us over to security, bypassing all the crowds. Before leaving, she leaned over to me.

         “Can I give you a hug? You look like you could need one.”

        We embraced and I thanked her for everything. By the time she walked away, I was finally at peace because sometimes a mistake can be a turn of good fortune, especially when you are helped by an angel in uniform.