I travel quite often. As a writer I am constantly looking for stories: I live through stories. And what better place to eavesdrop on a conversation than at the airport or on a plane?
Below is the compilation of top 10 situations I have had the privilege of seeing unravel in front of my chestnut eyes:
1. Two men, probably in their late 20s, were standing right behind me in the passport control line. Based on their accents, they were definitely from different countries. Based on their uncomfortable interaction, they had most probably only just met. One of them started talking about how tired he was because of his family, and the responsibilities he had to go back to. His new companion admitted that he lived alone, and usually felt quite lonely:
- Well, my friend, loneliness is a luxury!
- Not on rainy days, it isn’t.
- Do you want to trade then, maybe?
- Until when?
- Until I get tired again, of course.
Both men laughed. But without even looking, I could sense them grow fonder of the tension through their laughter.
2. A boy around the age of five and his mother were getting ready to board the plane. The child seemed concerned:
- Mommy, I don’t want to go there, I always get scared when we’re flying!
- Don’t you know about the magic trick? You should cover your eyes and ears when you start feeling afraid, and start dreaming.
- Should I always do that when I’m scared?
- No, no. Every other time in life, you have to do exactly the opposite.
3. I was sitting next to a middle-aged men on a plane, when the flight attendant came up to us and asked:
- Excuse me Sir, would you like some tea?
- Yes, please.
The flight attendant put a cup of tea on the tray and left. After several minutes, I noticed that the man had not even taken a single sip. I decided to inquire:
- Excuse me, why are you not drinking your tea?
- Oh, feel free to drink it. I don’t really like tea.
- With all due respect, why did you order it then?
- She was so polite when asking me, I felt it would be rude to say no!
I could not help but smile, as I started drinking my tea.
4. A young couple seemed to be saying a long-term goodbye to each other at the airport. Another couple, probably in their 60s, was observing the scene. The older woman turned to her husband:
- Honey, I don’t understand these young people being so emotional nowadays. Remember when we couldn’t see each other for months? We did not complain, even though we never had cell phones! Calling one another is so easy these days.
- I think that’s exactly the problem. Communication doesn’t take any effort now. So, if it is so easy for them to get in touch, they are probably worried that it will also be easy for the other to talk to somebody else.
I wished that the young couple could hear the advice.
5. I was sitting at my appointed gate of H4, when it was announced that the flight got canceled. A man next to me seemed quite nervous. Per usual, I inquired:
- Did you have a connecting flight, Sir?
- No I didn’t, but I will still be late!
- Late for what, if you don’t mind me asking?
- Late for reaching the hospital! A baby girl is going to be born.
- Oh, are you going to become a parent soon? Congratulations!
- No, no, I’m not. But I’m pretty sure somebody is.
With confusion on my mind, and no possible responses in my thoughts, I decided to slowly leave the gate, and wonder about the implications behind the bizarre, yet spellbinding exchange.
6. As I walked towards the exit of the airport, I saw two boys, around the age of 12, who looked identical. I assumed that they were twins. Undoubtedly, I slowed down to overhear their dialogue:
- I am worried that dad still isn’t here! He promised to be on time.
- Wait, Mike, what if dad got lost? What if he went someplace else?
- Oh no, Jimmy! What if he forgot that we were flying and went to pick us up from the airport we just came from? We are going to be stuck here for six more hours!
As I was rolling my eyes and my suitcase, I noticed their father arrive in about 30 seconds.
7. I happened to be sitting close to a young couple on a plane once. The minute our plane took off, the young lady spoke up:
- So, let’s talk about this job situation we have right now.
- Wait, are you serious? We are going to talk about this. Right now. Couldn’t you have picked a better time?
- This is precisely the time I was looking for. I mean, what can you do here? Pretend to be asleep for seven hours?
- It’s not like I haven’t done that before.
I sincerely hope they never heard me chuckle.
8. At the security check, there was a gentleman in front of me. He was wearing an expensive suit and carrying a leather suitcase. As he was passing through, he forgot to take off his shoes. He was reminded of the formality and asked to go back and pass through the security scanner again. He seemed particularly annoyed by the request and tried arguing back, but nothing helped. He slowly started to take off his shoes, only to reveal white socks with pink drawings all over them. After everyone at the checkpoint started grinning he looked around and declared:
- I have a daughter who’s 2, alright?
To the daughter, who is a lot older right now: Thank you, for the genius idea.
9. While standing in line to board the plane, I heard two strangers engage in a discussion:
- So, are you from New York?
- No, I’m actually flying there to start everything over.
- Sounds exciting. Do you have a plan?
- Not really. I essentially spent all of the money I had left on this ticket.
- All of your money? Aren’t you worried of having nothing left?
- To be honest, no. I was a lot more worried, when I had money that I did not know what to spend on.
10. On a transatlantic flight, I was sitting close to two women, who seemed to be colleagues. They were talking about a conference they were going to attend as part of their journey:
- So, when will it be decided whether Johnson gets her promotion or not?
- Well it’s actually up to you, Martha. You know where I stand, you know where the team stands, so basically, you are the deciding vote. Both figuratively and literally speaking, the decision is up in the air.
I don’t know what the conference was about, but she would have definitely made a profound writer.
But as neither she, nor anybody else from the above encounters seemed interested in turning their moments into tales, I carefully wrote the instances down in my notebook, only to share them again. So, the next time you travel and notice a girl jot down a witty phrase that you uttered, don’t be worried, but rather proud, since you have just granted her with another story to cherish.
