Wait Your Turn

Learn why patience reveals opportunities for elevation

By Chardonnay Beaver

One of my favorite activities is traveling.

Growing-up in a big family we didn’t travel much. Our summers were filled with drill team practices, internships, parades, soccer practices, little league football camps, and many other effective methods that kept ‘our village’ busy.

However, I began traveling independently in my early teens. Traveling solo is one of the best experiences, if you can manage maneuvering through TSA, long lines at the airport’s Starbucks, crying babies, and flight changes.

And, to make your airport experience even more invigorating, try flying standby.

Standby flights are conceptually unique, exclusive, and usually inexpensive. The secret to flying standby is patience. You go through the exact same preparation process as everyone else, expect your spot isn’t guaranteed. In fact, you may even prepare better than those with secured flights – like arriving at the airport earlier or occasionally being friendlier to flight agents.

When you fly standby your seat is secured due to two causes: someone doesn’t show-up or the aircraft has unoccupied seats. You never know what to expect until the people with secure seats board the plane. Thus, you have to wait your turn.

Each time I’ve flown standby I’ve had to hope that secured passengers miss the flight I’m trying to board. So I wait patiently.

Words of Wisdom by Char of the Week: Similar to life, very few things are guaranteed. While we wait for our turn to be elevated, we too must wait our turn. We have to humbly honor those in position that proceed our own. We have to intentionally prepare for what we are expecting. Isaiah 40:31