Our daughter, Amanda, will be arriving home from college for Christmas soon...for an entire glorious month. We're so looking forward to seeing her. She has been
enjoying college and working hard. It has been a great first semester for her.
Amanda did manage to get herself home for a short Thanksgiving visit. Her trip to us was easy
and uneventful. Her trip back...much more challenging. It was honestly her own version of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, if you happen to remember that movie.
We
took her to the airport first thing in the morning for an early flight back. When we arrived, the flight was delayed, due to a gale warning in her arrival state, and continued to delay every moment we sat there. It ended up taking off four hours late.
That meant that she would likely miss all of her planned, prepaid transportation to follow, even though she heavily padded the time on each one.
When her flight landed and she arrived at her destination airport, she had to sit on the plane for 30 minutes because it was busy at all of the gates.
Then, when she deplaned, she was having issues securing ground transportation. She managed to get a Lyft after a 20-minute wait.
She took the Lyft to the first
train station, and missed the train she was scheduled to take, so had to wait for the next one.
When that train ride was complete, she had to get to another train station (not her
planned one because she would not have been able to make that one). This one was Plan B. Unfortunately, the train station was unfamiliar to her and outdoors. Plus, it was dark by then, cold, raining, and she was unfamiliar with how to get from one track to another.
She called me up and I could tell she was close to her "breaking point" (on the verge of crying)...and also told me that this particular train station was a bit scary...which made me nervous.
But we talked it out. I told her to "take a deep breath and just focus on getting to the next point." She calmed down and managed to get to her train within two minutes of it leaving the station.
That train took her to the Amtrak station where she boarded that for her final two-hour train ride. This one was actually the one she originally planned. Luckily it was slightly delayed, so she was able to board.
Unfortunately, because she was literally running from one train to the next, she didn't have time to stop for food or water (since the airport that morning)...and wouldn't you know that the Amtrak she was on did not have food or beverage service that late in the day? Grrrr.
Needless to say, I felt bad for her. She was hungry, thirsty, tired, and stressed. When the train ride was over, she got an Uber fairly quick and arrived back at her college. This journey started at 6:00 a.m. and ended around 11:30 p.m.
She was spent, but I was relieved. Luckily, she was able to order food from the college dining hall, and her roommate had it all ready for Amanda when she arrived at her dorm.
I certainly hope Amanda's Christmas travels home to us are smoother than her Thanksgiving travels.
That being said, even with all the planning in the world, there are going to be days like this. But always have a plan...and a Plan B and C...and remain calm.
Here are some takeaways from this:
1. Always see challenges as experiences that make you more resilient.
2. Tell yourself afterwards, "If I can get through
this, I can get through anything."
3. When you find yourself in a similar situation, don't think about EVERYTHING ahead. Just focus on getting to the next point.
4. Stay calm and remember to breathe.
5. Say yes to the travel insurance. There is always a chance something is going to go wrong. When it does, you'll be able to get your money back.
