Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Luke 12:6-1 (NIV)
This photograph of the Miami, Florida airport must have been taken on the day after a hurricane when no one was left in Miami.
Because this is what the Miami airport really looks like. Hieronymus Bosch had a vision not of Hell, but the Miami airport.
Unfortunately for us, youngest son’s flight to Haiti left from Miami. Equally unfortunate was the fact that we didn’t have time to book him on a flight from Tampa to Miami that allowed him to meet his travel companions and get through security before his International flight. So, husband and I drove him across the state. While it involved getting up at three in the morning and traveling four hours on the world’s most boring road, “Alligator Alley”, the worst part of the day was our time in the Miami airport. After finally navigating our way to the parking garage, we were met by gum cracking Spanish speaking attendants who did not even look at us as husband tried to grab the ticket when it was thrust at him. Though the airport is supposedly state of the art, the ground floor of the American Airlines terminal looks like something from the inner city. Dirty, loud, dark and filled with panhandlers. We made our way up the escalator hungry for breakfast only to find no choices other than fast food. We ordered three bagels and juice and it cost almost $20.00. As we ate, I looked around us and saw a microcosm of the world. German tourists laughed and shared jokes over breakfast burritos from McDonalds. A Latin American woman argued with a Cuban porter who tried to warn her that she had too many bags to carry on the plane. Two dozen fully uniformed Boy Scouts carried heavy packs. I imagined that they were headed for a spring break camping trip until I saw them get in line for a flight to Haiti. Like my boy, they were on a mission. We had instructions to meet a slightly balding man in blue jeans and a white shirt at the American Airlines ticket counter. That was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Did you know there are not one but six American Airlines ticket counters in three different terminals? Did you know that there are thousands of slightly balding men in blue jeans and white shirts on any given day in Miami? We wove in and out of the crowds with youngest son on the phone with his target until finally the two connected. After exchanging pleasantries and being assured that youngest son would be well looked after, we hugged our baby and sent him off with strangers to Haiti. It is comforting to me to think that among the millions who flew in and out of Miami yesterday, God knew exactly when and where youngest son needed to be, and He will continue to keep His eyes on Him. As for husband and me, we couldn’t get out of Miami fast enough.
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