The Hug

My flight to Chicago was packed, as usual. I had plenty of time to make my connection, so I didn't rush to stand up and grab my stuff and stand in the aisle when the plane arrived at the gate. We were 30 minutes late and many of the other passengers had tight connections. I would let them go first.

As I was sitting there a small boy appeared in the aisle from behind my seat. Must have been in the restroom in the back of the plane. He grabbed my arm and gave me a sweet little hug. Surprised, I hugged him back, but have him a funny look. He gave me a "what's wrong with you" look right back.

I mouthed the words "is this boy with you" to the woman standing behind him in the aisle. She said that she thought his mother was a few rows in front of me.

Sure enough, the little guy came to his senses and pushed his way through the standing folks to find his mother.

While waiting for my planeside checked bag, I noticed the boy and his family. The boy and his mom walked up the jetway, while his dad and brother waited for their bags. I stuck up a conversation with the dad and told him the story of mistaken identity. We had a little chuckle. I hope the dad didn't give his son too much crap about it. I thought it was sweet and made my afternoon!