How Got Stranded at LAX for 5 Days. A Story About Resilience

Hi, everyone. I'm going to share a short story about how I was stranded at LAX for 5 days. This happened back in 1990. I was in the Air Force and had just finished boot camp (basic training) and technical school for my career. About a few days before I graduated, I was given my plane ticket for two weeks after graduation and I would fly out of LAX on a Wednesday at 7 pm. Wonderful, I went home spent some time with family and friends and flew to LAX on that day. I got there around 2pm so plenty of time to catch the 7pm flight to Okinawa Japan where I was going to be stationed at for the next 2 years.

I go to the counter to check in and the Airman at the desk tells me that somehow, some way, the date and time chosen for me was wrong. The flight I was supposed to be on left two days before on Monday and the next flight wasn't until the next Monday. It's Wednesday and now I'm stuck at the airport for 5 days. This was 1990, no cell phone, no email. So, they couldn't call or text me that the flight had changed. Now I have to figure where to stay for 5 days. I went to the USO and found a military discount rate hotel for $55. Oh boy, what is that room going to be like. Well can't be picky now.

I get to the hotel and check-in. The hotel was actually really nice. I met two men at the on-site restaurant from Muskogee, Oklahoma. When I told them I had an aunt and Uncle that lived in Muskogee they officially adopted me lol. These two men lived in the hotel saying it was cheaper than renting an apartment. They were really kind and fatherly.

Every morning, I had to report to the MAC (Military Aircraft Carrier) to see if there were any flights to Okinawa and every day there wasn't. So, I had to load up my luggage and go back to the hotel. When I would return, I would meet up with the two men that lived in the hotel and with their teenage sons that were visiting, they showed me around Los Angeles.

Monday came and I said my goodbyes. I stayed in touch with those men for a few years through letters. They moved from the hotel, and I lost touch with them. I will never forget their kindness in taking in a scared girl in a very big and dangerous city.

In that situation I showed resilience. I was able to remain strong and get through such a challenging time. Looking back, I am amazed how I did what I did and still managed to find some good in it.

I think we all do that when we look back on things we had to do because we had no choice and wonder how we did it. I'm proud of my 21-year-old self. I was so young and naive, but I was also strong.

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