Layover adventures

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Chelsea. On her travels to New York she had all sorts of small adventures.

Like getting her shoes shined. Who knew that could be an entertaining experience? During my layover, I got my boots shined by some guy named Ramon. He started off our interaction well. We did the whole 'where are you going, why, have you lived in ____ long, how long have you been shining shoes,' etc.  Then he asked, “how old are you?” I answered, “22”. He looked up to say something. “Wow, you have gorgeous eyes!” Tips coming your way, man. The rest of our conversation went with me giving a little, him giving a little. Eventually, I found out he has a three-year-old boy who he wants to spend more time with. Unfortunately, he works two full-time jobs. “My dream,” he said while looking over his shoulder to make sure the other shoe shiner was a suitable distance away, “is to own my own shoe-shining business. I'm gonna leave here and be on my own.” Isn't that an interesting dream? Maybe some people would think he isn't dreaming big enough. But you know, it makes him happy. And if he can earn enough money doing it, I see no reason why he shouldn't be able to. His shoe-shining skills are fantastic, by the way. My boots look completely new.

Same layover, in a corner. I was watching a show on my laptop under the pretense of waiting for it and my phone to charge. The show finished and I was packing up when I realized that my little corner on the second floor had another occupant. There was a man kneeling on a prayer rug, murmuring a prayer to himself. I continued to put my stuff away. I would have liked to watch (that was my first experience seeing a Muslim person pray), but I felt it would be disrespectful to him. After all, I would be a little uncomfortable if people watched me. I noticed another man standing awkwardly near, watching the praying man. That man, I decided, lacked manners. Then I felt stupid when they greeted each other like long lost friends. Oh well. That'll teach me to judge. But really, I was more amazed with the Muslim man's actions. In the United States,  ever since 9/11, there has been such a negative connotation with all things Islam. How much courage would it take to stay true to your religion when you knew that the people around you could have that perception? Furthermore, I think it would be hard to pray so openly, even if it was just for the embarrassment factor. I admire him and I hope I will never be afraid to show my religion. If he can do it, so can I.

On the plane ride to New York, I met a very interesting person. A guy guy about my age sat down next to me on the plane. He smelled like he had just been smoking and he looked a bit scruffy. The stewardess got mad at him because he wouldn't turn off his phone because he wanted to send a text, then when she left he pulled it back out again (don't worry, he turned it off as soon as we started moving. No violations). I figured I had been put next to a troublemaker. About an hour into our flight, drinks were being passed out by the same stewardess. The guy next to me stopped her and apologized for the way he had acted. He explained that he had a medical condition so he had to take medicine that made him a little loopy, and he realized that he had been rude. Once again, shame on me for judging. We got to talking and I asked him what he does. He replied that he's going to school, but as for work he grows medicinal marijuana. Yeah, it surprised me too. He lives in Colorado, so it's okay. He said that he has a medical condition, so he was always allowed to grow a couple of plants. Then a company who grows medical marijuana (legally, folks) contacted him and asked him to grow for them. We talked about it for a while. The curiosity got to me and I asked him if he was ever hesitant to tell people what he did. He replied that yes, it was something he had to think about. For people older than him, he just told them he worked with growing plants for medicine. He felt like he would be judged for what he did, and he's probably right. But for people his age (he said "our". I was happy someone finally recognized me as a college student without me having to show my drivers license) he would tell them if they seemed like they would take it the right way. I was honored, and told him so. It's always nice when people deem you worthy of knowing the truth. At the end of our flight, he showed me the way to the checked baggage pickup (what's the word for that?) and went on his way. Nice guy.

I think I've been lucky in my interactions with other people. I got to meet/see people from entirely different worlds than the one I'm from. Coming from Mormonville Utah, I think they impact me so much more than they do for people who have lived in diverse areas. Everyone is interesting, and I love seeing the differences.