Bumps and Bravado

In Flight to Ireland

I think we overpacked. Haha! Baxter, my oldest son, squeezed ten books into his backpack. TEN. I sat next to him on the plane, holding his hand every time there was a bump. Since my own backpack was stuffed to the gills too, I couldn’t access anything but my phone and my water bottle in the outer pocket. I sipped the cool water that I’d obtained after TSA and thought about the tension that I felt there.

We were alarmed when TSA pulled Alan aside for extra screening. The crowds of noisy people and beeping devices felt overstimulating, so I insisted on being with him in a quiet room. My heart raced. Travel always carries moments of fear. My mama heart was in my throat as my youngest smiled reassuringly at me. The issue? A Rice Krispie treat. He had tucked one in his back pocket just in case he got hungry later. The metal wrapper set off the alarm. Silly boy. Walking back to Colby and Baxter in our socks once our private screening had ended, I could feel the smile tugging the stress out of my lips. We gathered our shoes and our backpacks and our tickets and our passports. And we set our sights on the gateway to leaving America.