Our daughter Julianne graduated from college in May, a trip that was much-anticipated and planned for many months. The airlines, hotel rooms, car rentals, meal reservations and graduation tickets were all set and coordinated on Trip It (an online travel organizer where all the information on each participant is listed and all can access where, when and how the events for the weekend will play out).
Sounds easy and simple, right? I mean what could possibly go wrong?
As we arrive to lovely Newark airport, check the bags and head through the long security line, I’m feeling confident. The flight is delayed one hour. No worries, I’m still feeling confident. As I move through the line to board the flight, the attendant announces that my ticket is invalid. I head to the counter as Dan and Elizabeth enter the plane to save me a seat.
After a bit of a panic and finally being allowed to board (the last person on the flight), I am not as confident. But surely there can be no other issues. My confidence is back after the first hour of the flight. As I stand waiting for the luggage, I am still confident that although we are delayed a bit, we should arrive to the hotel by 11pm. One piece of luggage, the second one flies out…….the last and final piece of luggage is nowhere to be found. A trip to the baggage claim counter, discussion and paperwork has set us back another hour. Finally to the car rental building with another delay and we are finally in the car travelling to South Bend Indiana. An arrival to the hotel at 1 am has left me feeling a bit overwhelmed and exhausted.
Life has a way of throwing you a curveball every once in a while. The question is how to deal with the slight inconveniences that occur. The well planned for weekend did not include delayed flights, messed up boarding passes and lost luggage, but in spite of these inconveniences the trip was successful.
We had the privilege of sharing the accomplishments of our daughter with her sisters and grandparents and have great memories of thoughtful commencement speeches, awards ceremonies and, best of all, wonderful dinner conversations. All in all, the weekend could not be classified as anything but a great success.
The weekend was like anything that is well thought out and planned for, including a financial plan. Although you think you have planned for everything, sometimes inconveniences occur. And although you may hit a bump in the road (or lose your luggage), the plan was still on track. Plan for the unexpected. Success!
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