A Lady at the Airport Left Us This Note When We Needed It Most

It was our second time leaving our quiet home in Texas to see the specialist in busy Pittsburgh. We were surprised by how well the first visit had gone —  we’d brought family to help us carry bags and for mental support. We felt comfortable going by ourselves this time, just the three of us. It was our first trip as a little family.

Traveling with my son is no easy journey. Going through security usually takes a while because of the tube feeding formula, his medications and the rest of the medical equipment. You can imagine how exhausted we were by the time we got to the hotel. Two quick days later, it was time to leave the Pittsburgh airport and head back to Dallas. The doctor visit didn’t go as well as we’d planned. We were told our son was in the last stage of the disease. I was so shocked, disheartened and possibly depressed. We’d had so much hope and well wishes for our baby boy. This was the last thing we expected.

We waited to board the flight and get back home where we knew Lucas felt the most comfortable. I pointed out a cute, short old lady sitting across from us. She looked as if she was confused and needed a few questions answered. My husband and I were discussing how incredibly rude the staff at the terminal seemed to be to her.

They soon called for early boarding, and we followed the little old lady onto the plane. Before the rest of the people could board, the lady came to our seats and angelically explained that she felt safe on this flight because Lucas was here. She said the Lord will definitely not let anything happen to this miracle child and that when we fly, this is the closest we can be to Heaven without actually being there. We exchanged kind words. She lifted my spirit within seconds. She then shook my husband’s hand… and folded in her own was a $50 bill. We of course tried to give it back, but she wasn’t having it. The generosity in that woman was breathtaking — not only in the way of giving but in her words. She had no idea what we’d just gone through, and she had no way of knowing how badly we needed this sweet gesture.

As we exited the airplane, I made a run for the potty room. I’m claustrophobic and dislike the small airplane bathrooms (not to mention all the germs compacted into that one stinky place). I returned from the ladies room to see the lady catching a ride on those nifty little cars I always wished we could ride on through the airport. When I arrived back to my family, my husband had a Post-it note in his hand that read “A COINCIDENCE IS A SMALL MIRACLE WHERE GOD CHOSE TO BE ANONYMOUS!”

Before leaving, the woman had delivered us this one last message. To me, she was an angel sent down from Heaven to lift us back up and get us out of our negative notions that our son was losing his battle. It also floored me that her handwriting looked identical to my father’s, who had passed away nine years prior. I showed my little sister the note, and the first thing she said was, “That looks like Dad’s writing. He always wrote in capital letters. The only difference on this note is that the words were all spelled correctly on this one.”

So, whether it was the sign from our guardian angel, my father saying hi or just a genuinely sweet lady’s kind words, the message was clear. And oh, how badly we needed it. I will forever remember this day.

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