Several weeks ago, I joined a group of female family members for our annual “Girls Trip” to Las Vegas. I’ve written before about the camaraderie, laughter and bonding that takes place when the women in my immediate and extended family gather together for this getaway. It’s a time for renewing relationships and re-charging our emotional batteries. It’s nothing short of wonderful.
This year, we arrived in Las Vegas a bit later in the season than we usually do. After three days of activities, we all gathered together for a meal at a great restaurant, followed by learning a new game and the excitement of watching one of our group win! Heading back to our hotel, before our return home, my cell phone rang. It was one of my sisters. This particular sibling had boarded a plane earlier that night, since family obligations meant cutting her trip short by one day. She called me to report that her flight back to Kansas City had been turbulent, the plane had been buffeted by horrendous winds.
Thirty minutes later she called again. Back in her home, she turned on the Weather Channel and saw that there was a weather advisory posted for the Kansas City metro area, including predictions of winds blowing 40 miles an hour, snow and sleet. It was an ominous warning: if our plane arrived as scheduled, we’d be landing right in the worst of the snow and sleet. Not exactly a comforting thought.
Our group all turned on the Weather Channel upon rising the next morning, getting updates (and headaches) at the reports about the stormy mess we were flying into. I have to confess, I boarded that flight in a slightly nervous state. My anxiety wasn’t diminished when I chatted with one of the flight attendants who confirmed that the crew was expecting a rough flight. The pilot’s voice over the speaker system was a little more reassuring. He had flown through much worse weather conditions, it would probably be a very bumpy flight.
My group settled into our seats, fastened our seatbelts, and thought of ways we could distract our minds from worry. Some of us played cards for awhile, then we passed around the magazines. Two hours into the flight, I noticed the tension in my body was relaxing somewhat. So far, it had been a perfectly smooth flight.
Suddenly, my mother’s sister, Aunt Donna, turned and looked out the window of the cabin and gasped, “Look at this. I’ve never seen anything like it before.” We all craned our necks to view what she was seeing. Our plane was hovering over the most unusual cloud cover, as flat and smooth as a white sandy beach. Only slightly rippled, like a freshly-washed cotton sheet. And off to one side was the most breathtaking rainbow. Not just any rainbow, but a circular one, vibrantly colored. I was in awe of the magnificent beauty of this natural miracle. I’m not sure why, at that very second, I happened to look down at my wristwatch, where I noted the time: 2:11 p.m.
I suddenly remembered that exactly eleven years earlier to this very date, at precisely 2:11 p.m., my beloved mother passed away. For the first time since I boarded the plane, I let my body completely relax. There was no more reason to fear, for I knew, intuitively, that we were flying home accompanied by guardian angel wings. Why else would our flight be so calm, so safe, despite the warnings by flight experts who have much more knowledge and experience about such conditions than I do. It was supposed to be a rough, bumpy flight. But we had a secret weapon on our side – mom.
You could say that my experience was serendipitous, or that it was just a coincidence that I happened to look down at my watch seconds after that reassuring view of clear weather. But I prefer to think that there was a greater force involved. Even though my mother is no longer with us physically, her spirit is always with us. Living in our hearts, our minds, through our beliefs and in our children.
For the record, our plane landed without incident. Inside the terminal, as I waited for my luggage, I looked out the window and could see the tarps covering the luggage carts flapping wildly in the wind. It had been a blustery day. It had, as predicted, snowed that morning and was now sleeting . But our flight had been as smooth and calm as if it were a sunny, balmy day.
Thanks Mom. I have no doubt in my mind that a guardian angel brought us safely home.