It’s hajj season. It is also the season my heart inevitably melts every time I take our guests from their homeland to the holy land, Mecca.
Our roster this month is jam-packed with hajj flights. Hajj flight is a sector where all our passengers on board are pilgrims. They are my fellow Muslims who travel to Mecca to perform this once in a lifetime pilgrimage.
I will not talk about Hajj, as I myself haven’t done it yet. But I will talk about the beginning of their journey.
The usual scenario is I stand in the aisle, waiting for them to embark the aircraft. The first few guests are in wheelchairs. They are assisted by our traffic control agents. Next in line are the people who use crutches. Followed by the other 300 able-bodied guests. Majority comes from one agency.
I know that there’s nothing to pity about these worshippers. But sometimes, I can’t help but shed tears. You know why? It is because of the fact that most of them have spent their entire lives working hard just to save money and be able to fulfill their duty as Muslims. That is why most of them are very, very old, especially those who are from impoverished countries like India, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
I can’t forget this particular passenger/pilgrim in my Lucknow-Jeddah flight. He was a very old man in “ihram” cloth (white garment worn during Hajj), holding a blue plastic bag with water and packs of biscuits inside. He was alone. I welcomed him from the boarding door and tried to assist him to his seat. Obviously, wrinkly grandpa experienced difficulty walking. I was holding his hands as he walked at a slower speed. We were walking for 5 minutes already. His seat was located at the aft and yet we just passed the first 10 rows of seats in the cabin only. I couldn’t take it, I had to leave him and asked my colleague to replace me. Not because I was being impatient, but my tears were already falling. I ran to the lavatory and cried. It’s just breaking my heart to think that he already reached that age before he (and/or maybe his family) became financially capable of carrying out Hajj. However, there was this pinch of happiness in my heart for knowing that he can finally complete the 5 pillars of Islam. During the 5-hour flight, I was visiting him from time to time. The Hindi-speaking grandpa was so charming. I offered him cups of water many times, but he kept on pointing to his blue plastic bag while smiling, implying that he has still bottled water.
Most of our guests are primitive. It’s their first time to ride an airplane. I have to clean the lavatory multiple times. Normally, if I experience this in other sectors, I get pissed off. I’m just being honest. But Hajj flights were exempt from annoyance. Guests are very grateful. I don’t mind giving coffee and tea repeatedly.
Pilgrims from Indonesia and Malaysia are so pleasant to look at. They all wear the same colorful clothes and carry same bags.
Seated on the emergency exit, as the aircraft lands to the most-awaited destination, I can see the excitement on their faces. I apologize to my airline, but I fail to do the “silent review”. Instead I whisper a prayer... “Alhamdullilah for I am part of this people’s journey to the house of Allah. May Allah forgive their sins and accept all their good deeds.”
