Sometimes, life forces you to abandon your current primary goal. It can be a good or a bad thing, but it happens. What is worse is when that new journey begins with a bad omen.
I don’t particularly believe in superstition. Most of what people believe to be superstitious events are just the luck of the draw. So many low-chance events can happen that it would be impossible not to have some crazy stuff happen to you.
That said, omens are not necessarily something you believe to be of magical or divine power. It could simply be a warning to be a little more cautious. If too many negative events stack over a short period, it can take a while to recover. So if bad luck has been looming in your life, it is worth being a little more cautious not to stack avoidable troubles.
On my early morning flight to my new adventure, a drunk guy forced his way to the plane despite being denied boarding by staff. His seat was right behind mine, so those around him had to endure the monologue of complaints of racism, lack of respect and his sudden streak of bad luck. To be fair to him, losing his mother must be a terrible ordeal and could easily be reason enough not to be fully in the right mindset.
What happened next was a reminder that no matter how much freedom we want to believe we have, we are all bound by the rules of society. The police came and tried to get him to leave the aircraft voluntarily. By now, he was quiet and not causing any trouble, but once society’s wheels of motion are in place, there is no going back.
The aircraft staff told everyone to take all their belongings and disembark to avoid a confrontation with so many kids in the aeroplane. That was met with a united cry from almost everyone as the realisation that a big delay was looming.
And so as the mixture of the frustrated crowd, those finding everything hilarious, and the ones who were too sleepy to care given the early start needed to catch a 7 am flight, we all crawled out of the plane. I was part of the sleepy group. Wondering how I had to make a decision an hour earlier as to whether to pay an extra 75 euros for my luggage being 5kg too heavy or risk missing my flight given how late I was. I was at the mercy of society myself. 75 euros for a slightly overweight bag is silly, but that’s what you get for not being prepared. I had 5kgs of toiletries worth 5 euros in my bag alone, and not wanting to throw them away while packing, that cost me. So much for caring about the environment. It was not even the money that bothered me; it was the reminder of imperfection and the lack of power to influence a seemingly silly charge.
Next, I thought about how I passed security with a gold necklace. I used to always get caught by these beeping gates. Not anymore. After being on over 50 flights in the last 15 or so months, I dont think I was checked even once. But this time, in my morning rush, I forgot to take it off while clasping for every minute of sleep. While it could be seen as a good thing that I passed straight through, it made me think about how reliable these gates were for security.
With these thoughts lingering, we saw about 15 police officers drag out our unlucky man. It was a nasty sight. The guy was clearly grieving; the police were completely disrespecting him. While he was shouting obscenities, he wasn’t a bad person. Just bad circumstances. What was worse was the middle-aged woman who obviously wasn’t happy about her 2hr flight delay screaming, “Shame on you, shame on you, shame on you”, like a scene straight out of Cersei in Game of Thrones.
How much could he have avoided this situation? It’s never obvious. I believe that we always have a choice. Even though past events can deeply influence our behaviour, we can still choose to do the right thing. To change, to swallow our ego and pleasure for the greater good. Otherwise, we are not living; we are watching a movie from a first-person perspective of a body. That’s no fun.
The man escorted out was a police officer himself in his country. He had a badge with him. I hope he doesn’t lose his job. Like any bad omen, he’s had his streak of bad luck and can easily hit rock bottom.
We all think these things will not happen to us, but we are at the mercy of society. Even those at the top of society’s hierarchy cannot escape its grasp. They may have more lead way than the rest, but in some cases, the extra scrutiny makes it even harder to ignore the rules.
Ironically, to become part of society’s elite, you have to take big risks, including disobeying rules. But do it wrong, or get caught, and you are an outcast. It’s no wonder that most people live in their comfort zone. It’s also why the internet is so dangerous. Anything there is permanent to stay. Many people would never survive the zoom lens of society if they ever got to some position of power.
The best thing to do is to stop posting or at least avoid anything that can be taken as politically incorrect. It’s also why I find discussions on Onlyfans intriguing. Most women, even those who crave a luxurious life but have little chance of big money, otherwise would not do it. And it makes sense; the world judges girls harshly for it. On the other hand, more guys would do it if they had the same demand, or they could swap to a girl’s body. Why? Men are not judged as harshly as women for attempting to circumvent the rules of society. Men are almost expected to do it. So the shame of society’s cruelty is a risk we do not calculate as well as women do.
With this morning’s derailed plans, it’s time to let go and focus on what lies ahead. A new adventure, even if a little forced.
