Flying for the First Time in 13 Years

Published May 2, 2012 | By Jennifer Sikora

Friday morning alarm clock rang at 2am. I laid there for a moment as the realization hit me that today I would be flying to New York. I got out of bed, took a shower, repacked my things and headed downstairs to wait for the airport shuttle. Time for coffee and reading — and waking myself up!

I put on one of my super cute new outfits and the cutest shoes ever that I got from Opry Mills the day before, with my bestie Michele I couldn’t resist them — could you?

As I set out a 4am for the Nashville airport, my heart was literally in my throat. I have not flown in 13 years and I was extremely nervous and not sure as what to expect at the airport. God rocks y’all because our shuttle driver was a brother in Christ and was cranking out some Fred Hammond and Kirk Franklin. It was then that I smiled and thanked God for the beginning of a fantastic trip and much needed rest for me! I knew that even though I was going to be busy, it would also be a time of refreshing as a wife and mother (we need that sometimes).

I got my boarding pass which was SUPER easy. They now have an automated machine so you do not have to wait in line unless you have to check bags. Once I got my pass, the next stop was the security line. It was looong, but moved pretty quickly.

You basically have to take everything off of you with the exception of your clothes and place them in these white bins. Then you get checked by a machine and after that you are good to go. All in all, getting my pass and going through security took me about 45 minutes. Once I was done there, I hit up my favorite spot — can you guess?

I got my favorite coffee –Grande Peppermint Mocha — and started the walk toward my gate and my flight. I cannot begin to tell you the excitement that was bubbling up inside of me as I made the walk down the extremely looooong hall ( I swear it was a mile long).

(Mine was A8 — all the way at the end of the hall)

I am not joking y’all. At the BNA in Nashville, those walks go on forever! I kept walking and walking and walking and I was thinking the whole time — am I ever gonna get there? FINALLY, after what seemed like 10 minutes, I reached the end and got settled into a chair to wait for them to board my plane.

About an hour later, they called for boarding flight 4164 to Newark and I jumped up and got in line to board my plane. BOTH times coming and going I got a window seat. I was so excited because I wanted to see everything!

As we took off and headed for Newark, I could not help but marvel at the clouds and the heavens. At one point, I found myself in tears as I looked at the heavens and I was met with this so early in the morning.

My friend and I had been talking before and she said to me, “Jennifer, God is going to use this trip to treat you like the princess you are. You deserve this time”. As I looked at that beautiful sun rising, I felt as if God was kissing me and saying — Here my daughter, Enjoy. Remember that your Daddy loves you!

I sat back and from that moment on, enjoyed my entire time on the flight. I read my book, prayed to God, and prepared myself for a journey that I knew I was not going to forget!