Reflection👥

2. Smile

DEDICATED TO: Priyadarshini2001,HARINIGANESH8 and thegirlnextdoor7781

"Beauty is power. A smile is its sword." 

- John Ray

_______

4th May

Anindita's p.o.v.:

The car pulled up at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Terminal 2. The car was obviously company sponsored so I didn't have to pay any fare. I simply handed over some money as tips to the chauffeur for his help and then proceeded to walk to entrance gate number 5. 

The security at the gate smiled at me and I reciprocated. They checked my ID and Passport and let me go my way. They were familiar with me as I fly fairly often, usually at this time. Another reason being my 'matchless' face. I made my way to the computerized check-in kiosk in the Emirates pilot's lounge. The flight details, weather conditions, in-flight crew information and the number of passengers travelling to Dubai and then onward to New York City were available for me to check. Skimming my eyes over the secondary details, I carefully analyzed the weather conditions. Wind direction- North-West. Clear weather conditions with slightly overcast skies near the Atlantic Ocean. Biting my lower lip, something I do when I am in deep thought, I checked out the possible flight trajectories. The flight trajectory from Mumbai to Dubai is pretty straightforward but there have to be changes in the route from Dubai to New York city as all flights bound to or from United States have been asked to steer clear of Iran's airspace. This actually meant a longer flight path!

Having scrutinized the situation fairly well, I took a printout of the flight route and headed towards security check. This was my 7th flight after the dreaded COVID-19 lock-down and by the looks of things around, it was perceptible that thousands were commuting by air for the first time, after quite a few weeks. Most of the flights I had flown during the pandemic was for ferrying migrant labourers.

Being a part of the crew gave me the privilege of skipping lines and going for checking but there were many passengers who began requesting me to let them go before as they were late for their flights. I complied and stood in queue for about 10 minutes after which I put my carry-on luggage and strolley on the conveyor belt for X-ray. 

I was taking off my blazer and steel band watch when I felt a little boy of around 5 years of age looking at me curiously.  I know what he was trying to see. I know and I understand that he had no clue why I looked different. His gaze was neither offending nor insulting in any way. Rather, it was quite observant and innocent. His eyes met mine and he looked away immediately. I smiled to myself as he clutched his mother's hand and accompanied her to the frisking cubicle. I put my things in the tray and walked to the adjacent cubicle for frisking. 

When I walked out, the same child was standing in a corner nearby, most probably waiting for his mother to get their luggage. I smiled at him when I caught him staring again. He didn't return my smile. Instead, the curious cat turned to the other side, his ears turning red. Poor boy, although young and oblivious to the more complicated things in the world, he had been smart enough to notice something amiss. He must have thought I am in pain and that I wouldn't smile at him!

I waved at him once I had collected all my belongings and walked over to the bureau of immigration and this time he returned a small smile in reply. 

...

The immigration officer stamped on my passport fairly hard and permitted me to proceed. 

It was already 5.00 a.m. by the time I reached the boarding gate. The security official here checked my ID card and passport with immigration stamp again and gave me the green signal to board the flight. I met the cabin crew members and the first officer for the flight and we introduced ourselves. The two of us pilots went off to check the cockpit and the first officer began testing the controls and equipment. Meanwhile, I checked the report  which the previous captain had signed. All flight operations seemed to be in order and there had been no irregularities faced. The ATC checked the communication system and gave me clearance for the chosen flight trajectory.