Global CIO: A Holiday Miracle: Do You Believe In Angels?

(This column originally appeared on Nov. 25 under the headline Global CIO: The Thanksgiving Angels Of Flight 3405.)

Last nighttwo days before Thanksgiving, with airports and airplanes jammed with travelers eager to get homemy wife and I were lucky enough to squeak aboard an earlier flight that would get us home three hours earlier than planned, and we gratefully jammed ourselves into the last row of the plane. I felt relieved and luckybut within the next hour I would learn just how much I have to be grateful for on this and every Thanksgiving.

My education began shortly after takeoff when the attendants on flight #3405, just after announcing that the beverage service was about to begin, added that "We wanted you all to know that we're honored to have traveling with us tonight Private Aaron of the United States Army, who's one of the young men and women who by being so brave allow the rest of us to enjoy the freedom we so cherish. Please join us in thanking this young hero for his great service to our country."

And there was a huge ovation from throughout the plane for this courageous young warrior, who represents precisely what Winston Churchill meant when he said, "We sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."

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A moment later, I turned to the flight attendant working in the galley right behind our seats and thanked her for giving all of us a chance to thank that young man for his service and for paying the price necessary so that the rest of us can sleep soundly in our beds. She nodded, seemed a bit distracted, and than said that her own son19 years old, just like the PFC on our planehad recently joined the Army and was about to finish basic training.

She then showed us a picture of her son taken right before he he left for the Army with his arm around his very proud mom, and also shared with us a letter he'd just written to her with the oversized words "THANK YOU!!" splashed across the top and bottom of the page. "He's so brave," she said, "but he's so young!" And then she went back to her galley and engaged in some work that would prevent the passengers from seeing a member of the flight crew in anything less than a state of perfect control.

The woman in the aisle seat across from me got up and gave the flight attendant a quick hug; when this woman sat down again, she looked over and said that in some way she couldn't quite explain, she felt a connection with the flight attendant because this passenger had just experienced the familial emotional strain so evident from the flight attendant: the passenger's mother had just died and the grieving daughter was returning from the funeral.

"My mother lived a long, long, and wonderful life," she said. "But these young men and women in the military are only 19 or 20 and they're putting their lives on the line for the rest of us." So we chatted about that for a bit, and about her mom, and about the simple blessings of families, parents and children, and long lives filled with memories that some of these young warriors will not get to experience.

Then the flight attendant leaned in and said, "As brave as that young soldier is, there's another boy on this plane who's at least as brave. He's 8 years old, his liver has been failing for a couple of years, and they've got a donor for him in Pittsburghwe have him and his parents in the first row and as soon as the plane lands they'll rush him off to UPMC for the surgery. He's a real fighter."

By this point my head was spinning as all my usual standard, selfish, narrow-minded, and astonishingly petty flight-related thoughts flashed like billboards in front of me: I hope I don't get a middle seat, I hope I don't get stuck next to an overweight person, I hope the person I front of me doesn't put his seat back, I hope there's room in the overhead right above me for my bag, I hope the flight's not 10 minutes late or I'll be terribly inconvenienced, I hope the person next to me doesn't try to say hello, I hope the taxi line isn't too long . . . . And then the flight attendant reappeared with a conspiratorial grin and a bag filled with snacks for the young soldier to enjoy wherever that night's travels were taking him, and spontaneously several of us tossed more snacks and some cash into the bag. It was just a small waya tiny wayto say thank you.

So I believe in angels, and I believe they were aboard flight 3405 last night. They were with the little boy who's about to have the chance for a normal life with a new liver, just as they were on the ground with the other little boy whose tragic death in a car crash made the healthy liver available.

Those angels were with the young soldier who so humbly and wonderfully represented the 1,000,000 men and women of the U.S. military who let us sleep soundly, and who would never consider asking the sort of questions that preoccupy me because they're focused on keeping us safe from those who would do us harm.

And I believe those angels are with the flight attendant's warrior son, whose name is David, and with the just-buried mother of the woman across from me who tried to comfort that flight attendant.

Perhaps, on this Thanksgiving, inspired by what they showed me on last night's flight 3405, I plan to show them at least a glimpse of the better angels of my own human nature by giving thanks for my many blessings and by keeping in my thoughts and prayers our men and women in the military, and that little boy facing a liver transplant, and his family, and the woman who'd just lost her mother.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! (End of original column.)

And here are some excerpts from the many letters we received about the remarkable people and the better angels of their nature aboard Flight 3405. Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and Happy New Year to the most wonderful readers in the world!

From Janet: "I am an avid follower of your column and have frequently shared your words of challenge and wisdom with my direct reports, but I just sent your Thanksgiving Angels column to my entire staff. We need to be aware of the good and the strong and the true, to be reminded of what is important, to be taken outside of ourselves ... and to be truly thankful. Thank you."

From David: " Thank you so very much for that inspiring missive. It literally brought tears to my eyes, and they're still there as I compose (as it were) this. And then I went to your blog for the first time - I'm not in IT, but I enjoy IW - and I saw your Veteran's Day post. Thank you from the stepfather of an intel officer (USNR) who will be spending most of her next 2 years in Afghanistan creating metrics for our counter-insurgency efforts there, and elsewhere."

From Andy: " What a fantastic story to start the holidays off - thanks for sharing!"

From George: "I, too, had a similar experience. Our flight had only one Army enlisted man on board. He entered the plane near the end of the line and proceeded to his seat in the rear. I noted that many of us watched him as the walked down the aisle, many of us nodding to him as he passed. He always smiled and returned our nods. Prior to the final landing announcements the senior flight attendant announced his presence and asked us to please allow him to be first off the plane and give him applause in appreciation of his service. Everyone near me did so with enthusiasm. As we passengers were making our customary rapid exit from the plane I noticed the flight attendant standing in the galley area doing the normal "Thanks for flying" routine. I approached her with my hand extended and said something to the effect . . . " Thank you for the kindness, we never received anything like that when returning from Viet Nam." She graciously took my hand, looked up at me and said "I lost a fiance in Viet Nam." We both tried to produce a smile through wetting eyes and mouthed a brief "Thank You". I know I shall long remember that flight."

From Mike: "I just read your piece "The Thanksgiving Angels of Flight 3405" and loved it. What it really shows is how many of us in the shadows have had or are dealing with issues that others may never know. Have a safe and rewarding holiday season."

From Ted: "Thank you so much for relating that heartwarming story. It isnt often we hear about the good things that happen these days. Every day I am very thankful for the service of our young soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines. Not everyone is capable of or able to do what they do what they all volunteered to do. I know full well what each of them signs up for when they raise their hand to swear an oath to defend our great nation against all enemies foreign and domestic! My grandfather served in WW I, my father served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. I served in Vietnam, the Cold War, and the Persian Gulf war. My son, US Army PFC, is now finishing his advanced training and will return to his unit at the end of this week. He will likely deploy in June. And yes, he does this willingly and completely of his own choice."

From Laura: "Thanks for the reminder of what to be thankful for and the uplifting stories for the folks you profiled. I especially enjoyed this article."

From Danny: "INCREDIBLE column!! Thank you for writing of something so worthwhile. I will be passing this around."

From Ted: "I have been a long time reader and many times have cut out articles to keep for one reason or another. But I will share your Thanksgiving with all of my family. Thank you."

From Jim: "Thank you for writing the article Thanksgiving Angels of Flight 3405. It was awesome, uplifting and inspiring."

From Todd: "Just read your article, The Thanksgiving Angels of Flight 3405. Didnt expect to be so touched by a story in a tech magazine. Good job - totally enjoyed it."