Outside the Gate

A tall blonde woman and a small tow-headed boy strode up to the closed door of the passenger boarding ramp. The last of the passengers had just finished boarding the plane and the airport official had closed and locked the door. My family and I watched and waited for the plane to take off.

As we watched, we heard the blonde woman say, "That plane isn't leaving, is it?"

The airport official confirmed that it was, indeed, preparing to depart.

Instantly, the woman's demeanor changed. Her face became contorted with panic as she hopped frantically about. Her little boy looked as though he had been ignited, as he jumped up and down, screaming and clutching at his mother.

"Stop the plane! Stop it immediately!" ordered the hysterical blond. "My baby is on that plane!"

The airport official, totally dumbfounded, quickly unlocked the door to the ramp. In machine-gun rhythm, the mother began to explain how she had boarded the plane with her baby and little boy. As they waited for the flight to begin, the little boy realized he had left something in the airport. The baby was sleeping in a safety seat, so the woman and boy left her on the plane to go and retrieve the lost object. But time had passed more quickly than they realized, and they nearly missed the plane.

The airport official then escorted the woman onto the plane and reunited her with her baby.

We marveled at the drama we had just witnessed. We were overcome by how narrowly a tragedy had been averted. How could the mother have left her baby unsupervised for the sake of a child's trinket?

This experience caused me to contemplate what the scene at the gate of heaven might be like someday. Some individuals, like the passengers on the plane and the baby herself, will have peacefully arrived. Oblivious to the scene unfolding outside, they will quietly await an eternity of happiness.

Others, like the mother, would rather trade earthly trinkets for eternal joy. But a last-minute decision will reunite them with their loved ones in safety and peace.