Julianna

It had taken forever but we had finally all settled into our seats and the carry-ons were stowed for the flight from Miami to Dallas. Then the flight attendant said the words that made all us passengers cringe: mechanical difficulties. They were trying to find us a new plane but for now we were just to get off and wait. The girl sitting to my left looked at me with a deer in the headlights look and in slightly broken English asked “What is happening? Can you explain?” And that was how I met Julianna.

We spent 3 hours in Miami, waiting in line to rebook our missed connections, and forming a friendship. Julianna was in her mid-20s and had spent the last 2 years living in Texas but was born and raised in Columbia. Her husband had just been transferred back to Columbia so she had spent the past 2 months getting her daughter settled in there with her parents and now was heading back to Texas to pack up her house and relocate herself. She could have worked for the department of tourism in Columbia with the way she raved about her country. Doug, an airforce general from Arizona who was heading to Columbia next month, joined into our conversation and the time spent waiting in line flew by. We talked the entire flight as well and when we parted ways in Dallas I was sad to say goodbye. But we exchanged email addresses. She is going to practice her English in emails to me. I am going to practice my Spanish in emails to her. (Her English is much much much better than my Spanish!!) And I hope that one day I’ll even be able to visit her in Columbia (how can I not visit after she talked it up so much!!).

3 flights and 18 hours in airports yesterday should have left me in a horrible mood by the time I made it back to Seattle late last night. But making a new friend… certainly was a bright moment in my day.