Arriving at my gate in Miami airport, I gathered my belongings, chose a good place to sit, and waited till it was time to board. My mind was filled with excitement of visiting my family in the Czech Republic and I could hardly wait to get on that plane.
After a while, and no movement from the gate, one of the staff members announced our flight to Helsinki was 45 minutes delayed. “Okay”, I said to myself, that is not that bad, and I got up to go to the restroom. As I returned to the gate, my seat was occupied by another passenger. I looked around to find another chair. Knowing I had a connecting flight to Prague, I wasn’t sure how much time I had to transfer. I reached for my traveling pouch to look at my connecting boarding pass – only to find out that I didn’t have one! So I got up and claimed my spot in line at the front desk to get my connecting boarding pass and see if I would make my connection. I received my second boarding pass and was assured I had a reasonable time in Helsinki for my transfer. Feeling more at ease, I went back to my seat only to find someone took it - again. I looked around and found another seat, thinking to myself, “hopefully, the next time I get up, it will be to board.”
I sat, put my passport and boarding pass away, pulled out my phone to check my messages, and started to relax. At that moment, ‘something’ told me to look around, specifically to my left. There, about two seats from me was something blue that caught my eye. I zoomed on the seat to realize that someone had forgotten a book there. I leaned over to see if I could read what kind of book is it and if anyone around me was acting like they were missing it. The closer I looked, I noticed a small blue sticky note with the hand-written note saying ‘Read Me.’
Here is the funny part: I take you through my decision-making process that dictated my next steps and a reason for this blog.
Before I decided what to do, I had to listen to the two voices in my head. The first one was my mom’s telling me: “Don’t touch it; you don’t know who had it in their hands. What if it has some germs or bacteria on it? Didn’t I teach you anything?” While this voice was pretty intense, I gave a chance to the other voice. A voice that felt so smooth, sweet, soft, loving, a voice that said only one sentence: “If you don’t pick it up, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.” And so this voice, though softer, quieter, and subtle, won. I picked up the book and opened it on the first page. A handwritten message (same handwriting as the sticky note) read: “This is a traveling book. Take it with you, read it and then leave it for someone else. Be sure and record the date along with location(s).
Nov. 30th, 2021 – started in Omaha, Nebraska – ended in Miami, Florida.”
As I stared at these words, I felt the Universe chuckle because I understood the assignment. At that point, I heard another voice that suggested to see if it is a good book, worth reading and if it’s not, maybe I’ll take it to Helsinki. I read the first few pages and discovered that this is a genre I wouldn’t usually pick up. I typically read self-help or psychology books that aid in my personal development. Little did I know that, page by page, I was getting lost in a story and was interrupted by occasional announcements of Finnair staff telling us it’s time to board and later on board by flight attendants asking if I needed more drinks. And so the book traveled with me to Helsinki. In Finland, I was halfway through the book and decided to continue with it to Prague. As I enjoyed my time with my family, I would also read at night and middle of the night, during the jetlag times when I was wide awake. Within that week in Europe, I shared this story with many people, and everyone was curious about what happened next.
I was leaving Prague on December 7th, and wasn’t finished with the book. Interestingly, I finished reading it on the plane back to Helsinki. “Now what?”, I said to myself as I turned the last page and closed the book. Was this all a coincidence? Was it also a coincidence that I was the one who found it and picked it up? Was it also a coincidence that the book mentioned Finland toward the end? As I sat there, on that plane, I contemplated what to do and where to leave the book. I went through passport control and proceeded to find my gate back to Miami. My mom texted me, asking if I had finished the book. “That’s it!” I exclaimed to myself in my mind because the inspiration came in the form of the plan. I texted my mom to pick a number between 37 and 49. Those were the number ranges of the gates where my gate 47 was. My mom chose number 45 without knowing what I was asking of her.
I left the book in front of gate 45, which, that day, was headed to Hong Kong. I do not know where the book is right now if someone reads it and enjoys the mystical connection to the Universe this book provided for me. But what I do know is that there are simply no coincidences. There is a reason my flight from Miami was delayed. There is a reason why I didn’t have my connecting boarding pass. There is a reason Universe led me to this book. I chose to write about the story of the traveling book for two reasons. I wanted to spread the awareness of this traveling book for those who may come across it. And, I wanted to demonstrate that when you go with the flow and allow the Universe to guide you, you will truly experience miracles. I may never know where the book goes from here, but I love knowing that someone somewhere out there will have another mystical experience!
So if you hear about this traveling book or know someone who came across it, please comment in this blog!
What a great experience and trusting the meaning behind it. Knowing there was a reason for it. Hope the next person who takes the book realizes that. The book may take a very interesting trip!!