Still wearing the wings. ✈️

I didn’t take the wings off my jacket.

A week ago, a flight attendant on United Airlines offered my 10-year-old a set of Junior Pilot wings.

You know that in-between age?
Not quite little, not quite a teenager.
The age where it’s easy to get passed by.
She hesitated. But she said yes.

A few minutes later, she pulled them out of the bag.
I asked if she wanted me to pin them on.
She smiled … and said no.
So I said, “I’ll wear them,” and pinned them on my denim jacket.

Last night, I was heading out to an Our Third Place dinner and noticed they were still there.

And I smiled.
Because it wasn’t about the wings.
It was about the moment.

That flight attendant didn’t skip her.
She saw her.
Not as “too old.”
Not as “in between.”
But as someone worth noticing.

And it stayed with me longer than I expected.

Because, in our world — in business, in leadership, in communication —
we move fast.
We focus on the agenda.
The priorities.
The loudest voices in the room.

And sometimes - without even realizing it … we pass people by.

But the moments people remember?
They’re usually the quiet ones.
The unexpected ones.
The ones where someone took a second … and made them feel seen.

Still wearing the wings. ✈️ and thanks for making me feel seen last night, Kate English Mankoff !