“It’s mom,” I exclaimed, “she said she can’t see anything.”

        My dad quickly got up out of his seat and stood in the aisle next to my mom.  “Chris?” my mom asked.

        “It’s Chris,” my dad replied.   “What’s going on?”

        “Everything is black, I can’t see anything.  Are my eyes open?” she asked him.

        “Yes, your eyes are open.  What do you mean everything is black?” he asked as he tried to figure out if she was about to pass out or not.

        “I don’t know what’s going on, but I can’t see anything.  I can hear you next to me, but I can’t see you and I’m scared.  Chris, you need to get someone from Southwest to help,” my mom urged him.

        My dad immediately pressed the call button.  He turned to my mom and said, “I’ll ask for an Epi-Pen.  Maybe you had a reaction from the bee sting you had last night."

        “I don’t know, I have never felt this way before,” my mom said as she sat doubled over in her seat.  At this point, my sister Samantha got really scared and jumped over my mom and dad to sit in my dad’s empty seat.  Hunter didn’t even seem to notice what was going on because he was playing video games, but people all around us started looking at my mom, wondering what was happening.

        My mom held my hand tight as the flight attendant came to our seats. “Bella,” my mom cried, “I’m sorry this is happening. It’s going to be ok.”

        “Mom don’t be sorry,” I said.  “I love you.”

        As soon as my dad saw the flight attendant, he explained what was going on.   “Can you check to see if there are any doctors on the plane?”

        “Yes, I’ll make an announcement,” she said and then went to the front of the plane.

         Seconds later, the flight attendant announced, “Pardon the interruption, but there is a medical emergency on the plane.  If there are any medical professionals on board, please head to row 25.”

        Two passengers stood up and headed to our seats. There was a nurse and a doctor on board.  A nice woman leaned over and asked me for my name.

        “Bella,” I said quietly as I squeezed my mom’s hand.

        “Nice to meet you Bella,” she said, “my name is Denise and I’m going to help your mommy.  Can you come with me and sit in my seat?”

I took her hand and went to her row. I climbed over the man who was in the aisle seat, who I assumed was her husband.  Her seat was in the row behind ours so I could see my mom. They had her lay across all three seats. She introduced me to her husband and her kids.  

        “Hi,” they all said simultaneously.  

        “Hi,” I whispered, staring at the carpet floor. Her two kids were a lot older than me.  They looked like they could be in college. I looked through the crack of the seat at my mom.  Denise was asking my mom questions. She noticed that my mom was sweating a lot. She wrapped her arm and began taking her blood pressure.  The flight attendant came back with an oxygen tank. I sat motionless, filled with regret about how I acted towards my mom earlier during our car ride to airport.  She had gotten upset at us because we were arguing in the car and acting ungrateful. I don’t know why I got so mad at her because she was right, we shouldn’t have been fighting during the whole car ride.  

        “Bella,” my sister called from the row that was next to my mom’s row.  “is mommy okay? I’m scared.”

        “She’ll be okay, these people are here to help her,” I sniffled, holding back tears.  I knew I needed to act bravely so Sammie and Hunter weren’t scared, but I honestly didn’t know what to think.  What if she wasn’t going to be ok?

        I turned back towards the crack between the seats.  Now, they were checking her oxygen level. Denise’s face turned white.  “Her blood pressure and oxygen levels are low. We need get her an oxygen tank and mask!”  

        The flight attendant and the nurse worked together and strapped the mask around my mom’s face.  My mom still couldn’t see anything, and she was disoriented. I laid my head down against the tray table.  My eyes began to water, and tears started rolling down my face. Thoughts began flooding through my head. What if this is the last time I ever see my mom?  I’m sorry for yelling at her today; I was wrong. I put my hands together and began praying since there was nothing else I could do. I felt helpless. I heard my sister panicking.  I wanted to show them that everything was going to be okay, but I didn’t know what to say. What if everything wasn’t okay? I looked over at the man who was sitting to the right of me. He was watching an Eagles football game.  I began watching to get myself distracted from my mom, but it didn’t work.

        “I need you to breathe and stay calm.  Have you ever flown before?” Denise asked.

        “I fly all the time and I have never had a problem before.  My blood pressure is usually low. I don’t know. The only thing that was different was that I got stung by a bee last night and I am allergic,” my mom answered as best as she could.

        My dad said again, “I think she needs an Epi-Pen.”

        Another flight attendant came over and said, “The pilots want to know if you think we need to divert the plane.”

        My mom said tearfully, “No, please don’t. I’m sure I’ll be ok.”

        The doctor then asked my mom a series of questions. She answered him as best as she could, but it was hard for her to talk with the oxygen mask on her face.  He asked her if she had ever fainted before. He asked if she was nervous about flying. Again, she answered no to the questions. He checked her oxygen levels, and thankfully this time her numbers were getting better.    

        “Wait,” my mom said, “I’m starting to see things.”

        I watched my mom try to focus on my dad.  Her eyes looked like she was searching to see him, yet he was right beside her.  Then, I noticed that her eyes looked less confused and she seemed less frightened.  I smiled because it was then I knew she was going to be ok. She was starting to look like herself again.

        “Everything is blurry, but I can see shapes,” she went on to explain to the doctor.

        After about ten minutes, my mom’s eyesight returned.  They took the oxygen mask off her and they had her sit up to drink some orange juice.  She stopped sweating and her pain went away.

        “We notified emergency personnel at the Orlando airport, and they are going to meet you when we land.  We will have you and your family exit off the plane first, but stay seated because they will come on-board to get you,” the flight attendant explained.

         “Thank you,” my mom responded to her and then she thanked the two passengers that helped her.  After everyone returned to their seats, my mom looked at me and said, “I am so sorry I scared you.  I don’t know what happened, but I am ok now. I love you very much.”

I started to cry.  I reached out and she held me close to her. “I love you too mom,” I said as I held onto her tightly. “I am so sorry I yelled at you today!”

        “Bella, it’s ok.  I love you. None of this is your fault,” she assured me.

         Thirty minutes later, we landed at the Orlando airport.  I peered out the window and saw 5 medical vehicles outside the gate.  They all had their red lights on and they were flashing brightly in the dark sky.   The flight attendant announced over the intercom, “please, stay in your seats and let the family with the medical emergency leave first.”

         My mom looked at me and said, “I am so embarrassed! I can’t believe all of that is for me.  This seems to unreal.”

A paramedic and a fireman came on board and spoke to my mom, asking her if she needed a wheelchair or if she could walk.  My mom insisted that she could walk off the plane on her own.  

         I slowly got up out of my seat and reached for my backpack on the ground, then helped my siblings with their bags while my dad and mom walked down the aisle.  As I walked down the aisle, I felt like everyone was staring at me. I could feel my face turning red and I started to smile.  “Thank you,” I said as we passed the pilot and the flight attendants.

        Hunter, Samantha, and I quickly walked through the jet-bridge into the airport to catch up with my parents.  “Mom,” I shouted. I dropped my bags and ran to her. She was sitting in a wheelchair with a bunch of electrodes hooked up all over her.  I looked around and saw all of the firefighters and paramedics surrounding her, just like the ones I had seen on television. There were six of them all doing and saying different things.  Each of them asked more questions and did a lot more tests on my mom until eventually, everything was back normal.

After they finished, one of the firefighters, who seemed to be in charge, asked, “Would you like to go to the hospital? We can put you on this stretcher.”

        “I am not going on that. I’m okay.  Thank you. I feel fine now. I don’t know what happened, but I promise I feel fine,” she explained.

        My dad said, “Hey Beth let’s get a picture of you in the wheelchair.”

        My mom glared at him and one of the firefighters laughed and said, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. She doesn’t look happy about that idea.  You might end up on the stretcher!”

        “Dad!” I exclaimed.  My dad listened and put his phone away.  Afterwards, they insisted that they wheel my mom out of the terminal.  As we walked through the terminal, my mom reassured us repeatedly that she was better and that we would be able to go on the cruise the next day.

        My mom is one of the strongest women I know, so as suddenly as all of this occurred, it was over and the next day and we sailed to the Bahamas and enjoyed a relaxing and healthy vacation. I did not fight with my mom the entire trip. When we got home, her doctors ran a battery of tests and concluded that what happened was a result of a delayed allergic reaction to bees and she now carries an Epi-Pen just in case she gets stung again.  Having gone through this experience, it definitely made me so grateful for my parents and appreciative of all that they do for us.

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