On Sunday July 21, 2013 I met my directors, Connie and Marty Gushwa, at their home prior to my flight because they graciously offered to drive me to the airport to assist with getting my 4.5 pieces of luggage (4 bags and a crown box!) into baggage check at LAX. Upon arriving I realized just how blessed I was to have them there with me, and the hour-long drive on the way over was exactly what I needed; a last minute pep-talk started the week off perfectly.
Upon boarding my plane I had to climb over a man and woman who were already seated so that I could make it to my third-seat-over window seat… whewww, poor planning on my part... or so I thought! Five minutes into my flight it became perfectly clear that I was placed in that very cramped window seat for a reason. If you’ve spent more than five seconds with me you know just how much I adore the elderly. The couple that I had the opportunity to sit next to were approximately in their early 70’s and the husband (you won’t believe this!) had recently retired from a long career as a fifth grade teacher! As I am sure you have heard me mention numerous times, my life was powerfully impacted when I was in the fifth grade by my teacher. The influence that my fifth grade teacher had on my life was so profound that youth mentoring has now become a large, and important part of my life. We swapped war stories (literally on his end) and at the end of the six hour flight I felt like I had known him for years. I shared the challenging stories of my past, the teacher that helped me to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and how the two collectively led me to that very plane flight that I was on that day. While parting ways after exiting the plane he shook my hand with tears in his eyes and said, “I believe in you.” Who knows what exactly he meant with the short but profound sentence, but I can tell you that it was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment as I embarked on a very significant week in my life. Because of people like him, and all the others who have helped me to believe in myself along my journey, I started my week feeling like a winner, and today as I write this, even though I don’t have an over-sized sparkly cap sitting on my head, I STILL feel like a winner.
My directors gave me some great tips on how to manage my insane amount of luggage once I was left to my own devices at O’Hare, and I was proud to have managed efficiently. I then grabbed a taxi and made the 15 mile commute to the hotel where I was warmly welcomed by the hotel staff and was elated to learn that not only did my 4.5 pieces of carry-on luggage make it without issue, but the 33lbs of dresses, steamer and gift for the director that I had mailed via UPS made it as well… what a relief! I spent the afternoon grocery shopping, steaming dresses, unpacking, and mingling with other contestants in the lobby. Great start to a great experience.
