Estela finally arrived at her preferred class seat on the plane. But a man refused to sit next to her and told the flight attendant that the older woman should be in economy class. The flight attendant refused his request and the woman was allowed to take her seat. Afterwards, Estela told the most bittersweet story of her life.
“I don’t want to sit next to that… woman!” Fernando shouted to the flight attendant who had brought the old woman, Estela, to the seat next to him.
“Sir, this is your seat. We can’t do anything about it,” the flight attendant said softly, trying to persuade the frowning businessman.
“That can’t be true. These seats are too expensive and she couldn’t afford one. Look at her clothes,” Fernando shouted, pointing at the older woman’s clothes. Estela was embarrassed. She was wearing her best outfit and she hated that others knew it was cheap.
Other business class passengers turned to look at them and Estela Taylor looked down at her feet. The altercation continued and was delaying boarding of the plane. Several more flight attendants appeared, trying to calm Fernando down.
Surprisingly, other passengers agreed with the businessman. They agreed that it was impossible for the woman to have paid for the seat and told her to leave. It was the most humiliating experience of Estela’s life, and she finally gave in.
“Miss, it’s okay. If you have another seat in economy class, I’ll stay there. I’ve spent all my savings on this seat, but it’s better not to inconvenience others,” he said, gently placing his hand on the flight attendant’s arm.
The woman had been so kind to her because Estela had gotten lost at the airport. She was 83 years old and had never traveled in her life. So, going through the terminal had been quite confusing. But the airline eventually assigned her an assistant, who accompanied her throughout the process, and they finally got to their flight.
The stewardess did not want to argue with the businessman who did not believe that Estela should be sitting next to him, even though he was shown her boarding pass. The woman turned to Estela with a deep frown, although the anger was not directed at her.
“No, ma’am. You paid for this seat and you deserve to sit here, no matter what they say,” the flight attendant insisted.
She turned back to the man and threatened to call airport security to escort him out. That was when Fernando sighed in defeat and let Estela sit next to him. The plane took off and she was so scared that she dropped her purse.
Luckily, the guy helped her get her stuff back. But her ruby locket fell out and Fernando whistled when he saw the object: “Wow, this is something else,” he said.
“What do you mean?” Estela asked.
“I’m an antique jeweler, and this locket is incredibly valuable. These are definitely real rubies. Am I wrong?” the man said, handing the locket back to her. Estela took it and stared at it.
“Honestly, I have no idea. My father gave it to my mother many years ago, and she gave it to me because my father never came home,” Estela explained.
“What happened?” the man asked. “I’m sorry. My name is Fernando. I want to apologize for my behavior earlier. There are some complicated things going on in my life and I shouldn’t have acted like that. May I ask what happened to your father?”
“My father was a fighter pilot during World War II. When the United States joined the war, he left home, like many Puerto Ricans. He gave this medallion to my mother as a promise that he would return. They loved each other very much. I was only four years old, but I clearly remember that day. He never came back,” Estela said.
“That’s terrible.”
“It is. War is pointless. Nothing comes out of it. And my mother never recovered from the loss. The locket was very important to her, even when things were bad at home, she never thought of selling it. She gave it to me when I was ten and told me to keep it. But it never occurred to me to sell it either, although I have also been through financial difficulties. Honestly, its true value is inside,” Estela revealed and smiled at Fernando as she opened it.
Inside the locket were two photos. One was sepia-toned and featured a couple, and the other was of a baby. “These are my parents. Look how in love they were,” Estela said wistfully.
Fernando nodded, saying nothing, but looked at the other photo. “Is this your grandson?” he suddenly wondered.
“No, that’s my son, and in fact, he’s the reason I’m on this flight,” the older woman replied.
“Are you going to see it?”
“No, he’s here. Remember I told you I was struggling financially? Well, I got pregnant many years ago. I was 35 and my boyfriend disappeared. I had my son for several months, but it was clear I couldn’t give him a good life. I didn’t have a support system. My mother had already passed away years before after suffering from dementia, so I gave him up for adoption,” Estela revealed.
“Did you reconnect afterwards?”
“I tried. I found him thanks to those DNA tests. I asked a neighbor to help me send him an email. But Jose, that’s his name, replied that he was fine and that he didn’t need me. I tried several times to contact him and apologized, but he didn’t respond to my emails anymore.”
Fernando scratched his head in confusion. “I don’t understand what you’re doing on this flight then. You said you were here for him.”
“He’s the pilot of this flight. I’m here because today is his birthday. He was born on January 22, 1973, and I may not have much longer to stay on this earth, so I wanted to spend at least one of his birthdays with him. This is the only way,” Estela explained and smiled at Fernando before looking at the locket again.
She didn’t notice Fernando wiping a tear from his face or the fact that some flight attendants and several passengers had heard the story. After a few minutes, a flight attendant entered the cabin.
“Anyway, this is one of their longest routes, so I can spend five hours near my son,” Estela said, finally closing the locket and putting it away in her bag.
In his opinion, those five hours passed quickly, and when the pilot’s intercom came on, he announced that they would soon arrive at their destination. But instead of hanging up the connection, he continued talking.
“Also, I want everyone to welcome my biological mother, who is flying on my route for the first time. Hi, Mom. Wait for me when the plane lands,” José said through the intercom. Estela’s eyes watered and Fernando smiled, embarrassed for having behaved so rudely before. But at least he had apologized now.
When José landed the plane, he left the cabin, breaking protocol, and went straight to Estela, hugging her tightly. All the passengers and flight attendants applauded them.
No one heard him, but José whispered in Estela’s ear, thanking her for doing the best for him all those years. After answering her first email, he realized that he wasn’t really angry with his mother for abandoning him, but he didn’t know what to say to her.
So he apologized for not responding to her other emails and for not listening to her sooner. She told him there was nothing to be sorry about as she understood why.
What can we learn from this story?
- You should never be rude to strangers: Fernando was rude to the woman for no valid reason and then felt ashamed of his actions.
- It is always good to forgive: Estela did not hesitate to forgive Fernando for his actions and did not hold a grudge against him for how he treated her.
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