I was heading home. My travels took me from a small airport to a larger hub, then a flight to my city. I was mentally prepared for a whole day of travel which included a two hour time change, where I was on the losing side. I’ve flown this route before, so I was not expecting any surprises. My only wish was to avoid chatty seatmates so I could relax and read.
It was time to board and I proceeded down the tiny aisle to discover row 22, at the rear of the plane, aisle seat. It was a single, only one seat, so happily I buckled up, no other seat next to me. Across the small aisle were to be the other passengers of row 22, seats for two. We would be taking off shortly, as most passengers were seated and ready to go.
I didn’t see the women come down the aisle but noticed she seemed to make a crash landing into her seat directly across from me, at row 22. A large lady, mid-’70s I would say, seemed to take up both small seats of the row. When her assigned seatmate arrived, there was no room for him, as she had herself planted in the middle of the seats. He was a tall man and looked worried he was supposed to share a flight with someone who seemed to fill the allotted space. He seemed more and more upset and I thought he was not sitting down yet, scanning the plane for another, more comfortable seat with a smaller sized seat companion.
However, that wasn’t the case. He had called the flight attendant to report, “you have a medical here.” I followed his concerned voice and leaned over to notice the woman was not moving, she was unresponsive. That sent the flight attendant scurrying down the aisle to grab the PA system and plead for any medical personal on board. She appealed for a Dr, nurse, or EMT.
No one responded to her call.
That put the back of the plane, which included the four last rows, into action. The gentleman directly behind me jumped up to yank the women to the aisle floor. She filled the space and made it impossible to leave my seat. Another passenger frantically started CPR while the flight attendant grabbed the portable defibrillator. It was ripped open and used 3 or 4 times to shock the heart, to no avail.
The poor woman, known only to us a Debbie, passed away in row 22, United Flight.
WOW.
Our days are numbered. Having such an encounter with death, so close to me and so unexpected is off-putting, to say the least. How she made it through the airport, to the gate, down the jetway, down the aisle to the back of the small plane, I’ll never know. What circumstances surrounded her life? Where was she going on this flight? Home? To visit grandkids? Was she in pain? She didn’t make a sound or cry out in any way once she made her way to row 22.
Life is so fragile. I know I take it for granted. I made my journey home the following day, as all connections were missed. But that didn’t seem that important anymore. I was reminded to love my loved ones and tell them so more often. There is a day assigned to me as my last and we have no idea when or where it will be. I’m sure Debbie had no thought last Tuesday would be hers.
Go kiss your babies, hug your husband and call your family.
Each day is a gift, don’t waste it.