What do you do when you want to quit?

What do you do when you want to quit?
"Never, Never, NEVER Give up"

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

"Movin on Up Like The Jeffersons: My First International Flight"


"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.  Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.  It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.  We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?  Actually, who are you not to be?  You are a child of God.  Your playing small does not serve the world.  There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.  We are all meant to shine, as children do.  We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.  It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.  And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.  As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~ Marianne Williamson

The day had come for me to board my first international flight.  I was sick all the way up to boarding the plane. I had previously cleaned out my room and packed up all the things I couldn't bring with me right away and placed them neatly in the closet. I was only allowed 2 bags and up to 50 pounds each for the weight.  Carrying those bags to the car seemed like I was toting around two dead bodies; My mom was super nervous about me meeting the weight requirements., so I told her to bring trash bags just in case I needed to get rid of some things.

When I arrived to the airport, I located my terminal. I was told by my UAE recruiter that I needed to arrive 2-3 hours early to ensure everything goes smoothly with time. First of all, this was my 5th flight ever in life, so I was unaware that they even had an international side. And to my surprise, I was glad that the international side was less crowded and  less busy. Check-in was a breeze, once I rid myself of things hoarded in my luggage (I was paranoid about not meeting the weight requirement so I immediately took things out of the two duffel bags I had, which was totally unnecessary because they checked my things  without even weighing them; I got lucky I guess and I wish I hadn't even bothered because I am dying without my purses, shoes, cute jeans, hair products, and fragrances). 

Once I received my boarding passes ( I had 2 leg flight-one to Doha and a connecting flight to Dubai), it was time to say farewell to my mom, niece, and friend.  My aunt had called and prayed over me through the phone and my cousins called as well to wish me safe travels. I was prayed up, pumped up, and ready to roll. I took a couple of selfies with my family and they hit the road. It was just me. All alone. About to take a step forward into the future without looking back. 


I went through security and proceeded to search for something to eat (My stomach was feeling somewhat better but all I could stomach was a Sprite and saltine crackers). I reached the gate, plugged up my phone into the charger, and sat to create the most inspiring Facebook post thus far in my life. That inspirational post was suddenly erased as I decided to keep it short and sweet with pretty much letting my internet family know that I was headed over to Dubai (I think my sickness interfered with that moment lol). The outpour of shock and love was great and it made me that much more excited about what I was getting myself into. You see, many knew of my struggle with having my job rescinded and moving to Columbus to be closer to my family for awhile. So they were just as inspired by my perseverance as I was. 


I tried to take a quick nap, but there was no time. 6:00 pm had arrived and it was time to get on that plane. I looked up to see the crew walking in: the flight attendants looked dashing with their hair pulled back in buns, burgundy uniforms, and pearls around their neck...very sophisticated and professional looking. I felt I was in great hands.


The flight wasn't nearly as bad as I hyped myself up to be about. The passengers and I were fed dinner, snacks, and brunch and entertained with a variety of awesome movies that we could watch on our personal screens. We were also provided with a variety of items that would bring us comfort during the duration of this long flight: blanket, pillow, sleeping mask, toothpaste and toothbrush, ear plugs, and socks. I ate a little bit of the food, seeing as my stomach was still queasy, and got in a position to fall asleep; one that wouldn't leave me with a crook in my neck upon waking up.




Once I had made it to Doha,
the trip was pretty much over as the flight o Dubai only was about 30 minutes. I landed in Dubai and immediately felt like bursting out with Drake "We made it", but I opted for the Williams Brothers gospel hit "Still Here" with the lyrics of : "Through it all, I made it through another day's journey, God kept me here." I used the Marco Polo App to video chat my mom and friends and let them know that I had arrived, that I was safe, and that as soon as I could get to W-Fi again, I would let them know that I made it to my accommodations and all was well. I probably looked like a crazy woman attacked by bees as I swarm around the airport in excitement. The sight was a little bit overwhelming, but beautiful. There were many people about but everything seemed so glamorous and full of energy: very quick paced.



As I headed to baggage a claim, a man dressed in uniform holding a sign with my entire name was waiting for me. He escorted me to get my passport stamp only to disappear and reappear quickly with a beautiful bouquet of red roses. A smile as big as Texas came across my face. I had already felt thought of, appreciated, and welcomed. I was helped with my luggage and escorted to the transportation for the teacher accommodations. The 20 minute ride there was quiet yet scenic as I took notice of my surroundings; the cars and traffic, the sand, the extravagant hotels, etc. it had finally hit me at that moment that I was actually doing all of what I planned to do. I felt this was the start to a wonderful journey.  


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