海角大神

At the airport, I鈥檓 overtaken by grace

My trip had been a disaster, due to my own reticence. And now, who is this man tapping me on my shoulder?

My parents taught me to see dependency as something sinister: Accepting help created an obligation, likely a compromising one. Being denied help meant exposing a weakness for others to exploit. It was better, they said, to suffer alone than to let someone else decide your outcome.

I eventually tempered that view, and even thought I鈥檇 left it behind until I booked a solo hiking trip to Chile. My plans were last minute and haphazard, uncharacteristically so. As a rule, I鈥檓 a traveler who loves spreadsheets and over-researching. This time, I raced to the airport, repacking in the waiting area.

After boarding, I realized that I鈥檇 left my hiking boots at the gate. I had only the flip-flops I was wearing. With 20 minutes till takeoff, I needed to ask a flight attendant if I could go and get them. The thought of doing so sent my blood racing and my heart knocking at my throat. I said nothing.聽

Upon landing in Bogot谩, Colombia, I was so preoccupied with the boots problem that I got lost and missed my first connecting flight to Santiago, Chile. It was 10 hours till the next one. I鈥檇 still have time 鈥� barely 鈥� to make my second connection if everything lined up. Ideally, I鈥檇 ask a flight attendant to let me go to the head of the line to deplane, so I could race through customs and on to my gate.聽

I paced the airport cafeteria, rehearsing what I鈥檇 say. But when the time came, I couldn鈥檛 bring myself to ask. The flight聽left 10 minutes before I got to the gate.

There was nothing to do but rebook my ticket and tell my tale of woe to friends back home. After 27 hours in transit, I was eager for sympathy. Then, in what seemed like the last straw, the airport Wi-Fi would not cooperate.

Hunched over my phone, I didn鈥檛 register the tap on my shoulder at first. The man was casually dressed, with a baseball cap and a bag slung over one shoulder. He flashed an ID and began to speak to me in Spanish.聽

Determined to escape whatever scam this was, I got up to walk away. Seeing this, the man enlisted a shopkeeper to interpret: 鈥淗e鈥檚 an undercover police officer, and he says someone stole your bag, and you should go with him.鈥�

Indeed, my luggage cart held my suitcase and raincoat, but not my blue backpack. The police officer received my apology with good humor as we trooped up to his office.

I recall it as if it were a dream: the windowless rooms, the organizational chart of mustachioed generals on a wall, the fan that sent paperwork fluttering as uniformed officers looked up to say hello. They were all quite handsome. Would it be graceless to ask for a selfie?

There on a desk was my backpack, recovered before I鈥檇 noticed it was gone. The officer set about photographing my belongings: passport, laptop, camera, credit cards, and $800 in cash, neatly laid out bill by bill. He nodded at the money.聽

鈥�Gracias! Muchas gracias!鈥� I said, nodding vigorously in return.聽

鈥�颁耻茅苍迟补濒辞,鈥� he elaborated. Count it.

Next, he took my statement. This he accomplished by calling someone off-site. We took turns speaking to the enthusiastic person on the phone, who greeted me with a cheery, 鈥淗ello, lady!鈥澛�

The police report, duly completed in a neat script, was presented to me for signature. Then he handed me the backpack, ushered me to the door, and said, in English, 鈥淕ood luck!鈥�

It was dawning on me now, the loveliness of this reprieve. The officer had solved a problem I hadn鈥檛 known I had, both in the immediate moment and in a larger sense. To my mind, receiving such help would accrue a debt I might not be able to repay. Yet a stranger had come to my aid unprompted, without judgment or seeking recompense. He hadn鈥檛 burdened me with transactional expectations. On the contrary, I felt warm and cared for.

I walked on, lighter than air. The expansive feeling stayed with me through the final 鈥� successful 鈥� flight, the shuttle driver getting lost, and finally arriving in sunny San Pedro de Atacama. I was seeing everyone through a different lens, a kinder one: Not every mistake was a crime, and not every consequence was a punishment. I even found hiking boots to rent. It didn鈥檛 matter that I hadn鈥檛 been able to ask for help along the way. When I needed it most, help was freely given.

Editor鈥檚 note: This story has been updated to replace an outdated term for flight attendants.聽