Each week, Samantha Lewis shares her insights on various topics, from exploring new health trends to reimagining personal growth.
Nothing like travelling to observe human behaviour.
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Recently I flew north, bound for the Whitsundays, with an early morning departure.
Determined to bring my newly “regenerated” self into the day, I left an hour of buffer time up my sleeve, something the old me (usually running behind or just-on-time) would never have managed.
It turned out that buffer wasn’t wasted.
- I was 15 minutes late getting out the door.
- The shuttle driver asked us to wait for other passengers (another 10 minutes gone).
- Then the road to the terminal was blocked, so we were dropped at a bus stop to walk the rest of the way (10 minutes lost).
- There was a decent line for security then my bag was held up behind someone’s that needed extra checks (10 more minutes).
- Desperate for coffee, the place I opted for was heaving as I joined the mob of bleary-eyed travellers clutching their boarding passes like lifelines (another 5–10 minutes, plus $7). This available wait time felt like my reward, as I used the remaining 15 minutes of my buffer hour.
Usually, the little speed bumps would have sent me into a frantic state of stress.
But instead of fighting the clock, I noticed myself breathing easy, telling myself: This is exactly why you allowed the buffer.
The bloke in the coffee line
As I waited, a man came up behind me, huffed loudly, and snapped:
“Oh this is ridiculous!”
He hadn’t even ordered yet.
Instead, he stormed off to a quieter café, making sure everyone within earshot knew he was unimpressed.
I caught myself almost laughing.
Here we were, in an airport, a place of immense privilege if you think about it, where people can afford flights, food, and holidays.
And this bloke was carrying on about the idea of waiting in line for a coffee.
Mate, I thought, check yourself.
When plans change
Mid-flight, an announcement came over the speaker: our flight to the Whitsundays was being diverted to Brisbane as the result of a radio issue.
Here we go– I thought, as I braced myself for a kick-off.
Surely at least one person was about to carry on “like a pork chop,” as we Aussies say.
But something surprising happened.
Around me, people just … accepted it.
Sure, there was disappointment, but no tantrums.
No eye-rolls or angry muttering.
Just a collective exhale of okay, then.
Don’t get me wrong, my own first thought was frustration, my sinus’ nor I like to spend any extra time on a plane than required.
But within seconds, the notion of inconvenience was replaced by gratitude.
Gratitude for the fact that I was even on a plane, headed for one of the most beautiful places on earth.
Gratitude that the pilot and crew were prioritising our safety over schedules.
Gratitude that I would arrive later, but still arrive.
Better to arrive late than not at all, am I right?
Choosing patience
That morning reminded me that patience is a choice.
We can’t always control delays, diversions or long lines.
But we can control how we meet them.
When we meet life’s little frustrations with patience, we gift ourselves peace.
And when we extend kindness to ourselves, to strangers in coffee lines, to airline staff breaking the news, we create an atmosphere that makes the waiting lighter for everyone.
I thought about the man in the café queue.
Maybe he was stressed, tired, or carrying burdens I couldn’t see.
Maybe his snapping was just a crack in the armour of his morning.
Who knows?
What I do know is this: impatience never makes the line shorter, the flight faster or the day easier.
But kindness often does.
A gentle reminder
Travel has a way of holding up a mirror.
In airports and on planes, our patience is tested.
Our small habits are magnified.
And our ability to show grace to ourselves and to others, is often revealed in the most ordinary moments.
So the next time you’re stuck in a queue, running late, or diverted from your original path, try a pause and reframe.
What’s the bigger picture here? Chances are, you’ll find a little gratitude tucked in the corners.
Because life, like travel, isn’t about how perfectly we stick to the schedule, it’s about how gracefully we handle the detours.