“I don’t want to sit next to that… woman!” Franklin Delaney almost yelled at the flight attendant who had accompanied an older woman and told him she was seated next to him.

“Sir, this is her seat. We can’t do anything about it,” the stewardess said gently, trying to persuade the businessman who had a scowl on his face.

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“That can’t be true. These seats are way too expensive, and she couldn’t possibly afford one! Look at her clothes!” Franklin almost yelled, pointing at the older woman's clothes. Stella was ashamed. She was wearing her best clothes and hated that others knew her outfit was cheap.

Other passengers in business class turned to look at them, and the older woman, Stella Taylor, looked down at her feet. The altercation continued, and it was delaying filling the plane. Several other flight attendants showed up, trying to calm Franklin down.

Surprisingly, other passengers agreed with the businessman. They agreed that the woman couldn’t possibly have paid for the seat and told her to get out. It was the most humiliating experience of Stella’s life, and finally, she relented.

“Miss, it’s ok. If you have another seat in economy, I’ll stay there. I spent all my savings on this seat, but it’s better not to inconvenience others,” she said, placing her hand on the stewardess' arm gently.

The woman had already been so kind to her because Stella got lost at the airport. She was 85 years old and had never traveled in her lifetime. Therefore, the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport had been pretty confusing. But the airline finally assigned her an attendant, who accompanied her through the entire process, and they finally reached her flight, which was departing for New York.

The flight attendant didn’t want to fight with the businessman who wouldn’t believe Stella was seated next to him, although they even showed him her boarding pass. The woman turned to Stella with a severe scowl, although the anger was not directed at Stella.

“No, ma’am. You paid for this seat, and you deserve to sit here, no matter what anyone says,” the flight attendant insisted.

She turned towards the man again and threatened to call airport security to escort him out. That’s when the man sighed in defeat and let Stella sit next to him. The plane took off, and Stella got so spooked that she dropped her purse.

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Luckily, the man was not completely unreasonable and helped her retrieve her things. But her ruby locket fell out, and the man whistled at the item. “Wow, this is something else,” he commented.

“What do you mean?” Stella asked.

“I’m an antique jeweler, and this locket is insanely valuable. Those are definitely real rubies. Am I wrong?” the man said, handing her the locket back. Stella grabbed it back and stared at it.

“Honestly, I have no idea. My father gave it to my mother so many years ago, and she gave it to me when my father didn’t return home,” Stella said.

“What happened?” the man asked. “I’m sorry. My name is Franklin Delaney. I want to apologize for my earlier behavior. Some complicated things are happening in my life, and I shouldn’t have acted that way. May I ask what happened to your father?”

“My father was a fighter pilot during World War II. When America joined the war, he left home but gave this locket to my mother as a promise he would return. They loved each other dearly. I was only four years old at the time, but I remember that day clearly. He never returned,” Stella explained.

“That’s terrible.”

“It is. War is senseless. Nothing comes from it. And my mother never recovered from the loss. She was a shell of herself, and we barely scraped by. But even when things were dire at home, she never thought to sell it. She gave it to me when I was ten years old and told me to keep it. But I never thought to sell it either, although I’ve been through financial difficulties too. Honestly, its real value is inside,” Stella revealed and smiled at Franklin as she opened it.

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Two pictures were inside the locket. One was sepia-toned and featured a couple, and the other one showed a baby. “These are my parents. Look how in love they were,” Stella said nostalgically.

Franklin nodded, not saying anything, but looked at the other picture. “Is that your grandchild?” he wondered suddenly.

“No, that’s my son, and actually, he’s the reason I’m on this flight,” the older woman replied.

“You’re going to see him?”

“No, this is it. Do you remember how I said I had financial troubles? Well, I got pregnant many years ago. I was in my 30s, and my boyfriend disappeared. I had my son for several months, but it was clear that I wouldn’t be able to give him a good life. I didn’t have a support system. My mother had already passed years earlier after suffering from dementia, so I gave him up for adoption,” Stella revealed.

“You two reconnected later?”

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“I tried. I found him thanks to those DNA test things. I asked a neighbor kid to help me email him. But Josh — that’s his name — replied that he was fine and didn't need me. I tried several times to contact him and asked for forgiveness, but he never answered my emails again.”

Franklin scratched his head in confusion. “I don’t understand what you’re doing on this flight then. You said you were here for him.”

“He’s the pilot on this flight. I’m here because today is his birthday. He was born on January 22, 1973, and I might not have long on this earth, so I wanted to spend at least one of his birthdays with him. This is the only way,” Stella explained and smiled at Franklin before turning her eyes to the locket again.

She didn’t notice Franklin wiping an errant tear off his face or the fact that some flight attendants and several passengers had heard the story. After a few minutes, one stewardess went into the cockpit.

“Anyway, this is one of his longest routes, so I get to spend five hours near my son,” Stella said, finally closing the locket and placing it in her bag.

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In her opinion, those five hours passed quickly, and when the pilot’s intercom came on, he announced they would arrive at JFK soon. But instead of turning off the communication, he continued his message.

“In addition, I want everyone to welcome my birth mother, whose flying on my route for the first time. Hey, Mom. Wait for me once the plane lands,” John said through the intercom. Stella’s eyes watered, and Franklin smiled, ashamed that he had behaved so rudely earlier. But at least, he apologized already.

When John landed the plane, he exited the cockpit, breaking protocol, and went right to Stella with his arms wide open, hugging her fiercely. All the passengers and flight attendants cheered and clapped for them.

No one heard it, but John whispered in Stella’s ears, thanking her for doing what was best for him all those years ago. After replying to her first email, John realized he was not really angry with his mother for giving him up but didn't know what to say to her. So he apologized for not answering her other emails and not listening to her before. She told him there was nothing to be sorry for, as she understood why.

What can we learn from this story?

• Never be rude to strangers no matter what. Franklin was rude to the woman for no valid reason and was ashamed of his actions later.
• Forgiveness is divine. Stella was quick to forgive Franklin for his actions and held no grudge against the man seated next to her.

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