Nate's Thoughts

Airports

Posted on Wed 07/16/08 in Church

So we are all gathered at the Memphis International Airport ready to depart for Atlanta and then onto our final destination, Rio Brazil. We say our “cya later”, “love ya”, etc to all of our family and friends and start going through the dreaded security line. Thankfully for us we were the only ones in that line so it went pretty quick and easy. We all get down to our gate and just talking about the trip and everything when we find out the flight has been delayed…YIPPEEEE! sarcasm We find out it’s due to the weather..in Atlanta not here. I pull the crackberry and see the storm that is hitting Atlanta pretty good. We wait…and wait…and wait. It isn’t until 9 something that we get to leave. I instantly fall asleep on the plane before we even take off and I didn’t wake for 45 minutes.

We land in Atlanta and find out that our flight to Rio left without us so we are going to camp in ATL. We spend the next day hanging out in Atlanta and then go to the airport to get ready to go to Rio. With no hitches, we board the plane and start the flight.

Once we arrive in Rio, we get all 20 bags from the belt and find out that one of mine bags are being held. Also one of Big C’s. We wait in this line with 3-4 people in front of us. We watch as they get the bags held in customs and ask questions to the owner of the bag and proceed to look through it. Then once they are done with that bag, they ask to look through the other bags the owner has, even though they were already cleared. So it takes 20 minutes until we get up there and mine went pretty easy. He asked “what is it?”, “how much?”, and “what else you got?” and then I’m cleared to go. They start talking to Big C and clear him of the bags he checked then ask him about his carry on. It went something like this:

Security: What do you have in there pointing to carry on
Big C: Bible
Security: You pray?
Big C: Yes
Security: Ok, you ok.

So Big C and I go meet up with the rest of the team and meet Pastor Phillip and Renee. We load up and begin our journey to where we are staying…

insert missions trip stories … yes they’ll come later.

Fast forward til the end of the trip…we are in Rio and getting ready to leave for the States. I think the majority of us were ready to be home. It wasn’t a “i’m tired of Brazil and I just want to get home” but more like a “We’ve had a great trip, love Brazil, love the people, but ready to see friends and family and sleep in our own bed.” We get to the airport at 9p and wait in line to get checked in. I had one big bag to check and 2 carry-ons. One of the carry-ons was my camera bag. With no issues, we get on the plane and leave for Atlanta.

Now it’s a 8 hour flight from 11p to 8a (time change included). We get 2 meals and have movies, tv shows, games, and music to entertain those who can’t sleep. It actually isn’t bad if you are able to sleep because that can take up half your flight then you eat and play games. It’s like kindergarten all over again, except I actually slept instead of playing with my toys behind the bookcase. Sorry Ms. Delue.

So we finally get to ATL for a couple hour layover and just chill. Once I got on the Memphis flight I knew we were almost there since it’s only an hour flight. So I was awake for good, so I pull my camera out and start deleting masses of pictures. I wasn’t finished so I opened my front pocket on camera bag, reach in and feel around for my second memory card. My hand is going all over the 6“x6” space until I feel something that makes me give the :O face. Yeah, I look down and see I carried my 3” pocket knife onto the plane. It’s gone through the security check from Rio to Atlanta and now Atlanta to Memphis. It was just abit scary to think I carried it on, accidentally of course. I look over to Jane and just laugh and tell her that “I gotta tell you once we get off the plane.” I wasn’t about to go “JANE, I GOT A KNIFE ON THE PLANE…BY ACCIDENT” because if I did I’d probably have the 2 country Arkansas boys that sat behind me trying to hog tie me with their shoelaces. These are the same boys who as we were flying over Southaven, MS started looking down at the neighborhoods and counting the pools. Exact words uttered multiple times: “hey, look therre are one, too, thewe, foo, fiv pools in the same aria, thas jus ridicilous. therre is no need fo all of dem, we wood have jus one pool and everyone wood have gon ova there!” I was trying to keep it in and they were good people who were coming back from a missions trip to Zambia. So I get off the plane and tell Jane. I was just thankful that it wasn’t found. That would have sucked! I’ll have more stories later…promise!