Go Beyond

I am en route to Grand Rapids via Chicago as I write this post at thirty-seven thousand feet. My flight was delayed a bit because of the weather. Chicago was covered with snow — a beautiful thing to behold unless you are trying to get from Point A to Point B without having to spend extra hours at an airport. While our plane was being de-iced, I pulled a copy of Hemispheres, the United Airlines magazine, from the seat pocket in front of me and started mindlessly leafing through the pages. When I turned to page 11, I paused and I smiled. It seems that a previous passenger, a little girl named Sophia, used this page to practice writing the letters of the “alfabet” with an aqua-colored marker. And then on the next page, she wrote a sweet love note to her grandmother — “Grandma I love you so much because your leting me sleep with you.”

Apparently, Sophia was traveling with her grandmother and was quite excited about the opportunity to spend some time with her. I understand how Sophia feels because some of my very best childhood memories are about time spent with my grandparents. I could not help but wonder about this sweet little girl who sat in seat 15C next to her grandmother and practiced writing the alphabet on the glossy pages of an airline magazine. I am thankful that Sophia turned the page in the magazine and used the letters of the alphabet to express her affection for her grandmother. Our words have the power to bless or to curse others. Sophia chose to use her words to bless her grandmother. When she had finished writing her note she signed it “love Sophia” and then put the magazine back in the seat pocket. Sophia never realized that I would stumble across her sweet message on a cold, snowy day while far from home and be encouraged by her words.

I like surprises like the one I found in the Hemispheres magazine. And, I am thankful that I was assigned seat 15C — the seat previously assigned to Sophia, the little girl who unwittingly made me smile. It’s easy to go through life with little thought or regard for the people who will come after us and sit in the places we have previously occupied. If more of us practiced the alphabet like Sophia and then took the time to write love notes or thank you notes or words of encouragement to others, we might bless others in ways we never imagined. What messages will you leave for those who come after you? Let’s follow Sophia’s example and leave a cache of love notes tucked away in places that God can use to encourage those who will one day walk where we have walked. Thanks, Sophia — wherever you are. I hope you have a great time with your grandmother!