Flying by Yourself



Six hours. That’s how long it was going to take for me to fly from the cold airport of JFK all the way to the sunny San Diego, California. During the two hour car ride to the airport, I would have normally been excited for the flight, but not this time… this was going to be my first time flying alone. I would have no friends or family with me, just complete strangers. What if my seat was next to someone that fell asleep on my shoulder? Or what if I was stuck in the window seat and nobody would let me get out of the aisle? As all these questions were running through my mind, I kept reminding myself that I was thirteen. I knew I shouldn’t have been scared, I was a teenager and I was mature enough for this experience. Planes are so safe these days, but I couldn’t help but think of the worst things happening. Scenarios of my plane crashing, or the oxygen masks coming down while I was asleep kept repeating themselves over and over in my mind. I knew none of this would actually happen, but with my bad luck, I thought it would. It turned out that I ended up sleeping most of the ride and watching countless episodes of Teen Mom, and of course nothing in my imagination actually ended up happening. And as everyone had told me before, my plane ride went smoothly. My plane landed in one piece the uncle I was visiting greeted me happily. Long story short, do not be afraid when it comes to flying solo. As I keep saying, it was completely safe, but not only that, it was fun! The flight attendants gave me special attention because I was an unaccompanied minor. They kept giving me free food throughout the long ride; I was treated like royalty! On both plane rides, there and back, I got to meet the captain, which was so cool! All in all, I had a great experience flying by myself and I’m sure everyone else would too. If this opportunity ever comes up for you I definitely recommend taking it without any hesitation. Do not be nervous, and just enjoy the ride.