Last August I was on a plane from LA to Dallas on my trip back from Alaska. The plane was 8 hours delayed so it wasn't going to arrive in DFW until 2:00 AM. On this plane, I sat next to a girl who I thought was a similar age to me. Not thinking the conversation would go anywhere because of how late it was, I struck up the typical "sitting next to you" conversation.
The conversation continued on through the night and she told me that she worked for a company called "The Giving Keys". She went on to tell me how her company took old used keys, stamped a word into it, and then put a chain around it. The point is to pass the key to other people when the word has been fulfilled.
I then told her about my walk in my faith and how an opportunity to go on a mission trip next May to Kenya, Africa had been presented to me. I told her how the cost of the trip scared me and how I'd never raised that much money before. Eventually the conversation died and we fell asleep.After the plane landed and we were departing the plane, the girl turned around and told me that she hoped that I would get to travel to Kenya next May. She then handed me the key that had been around her neck. The key read "HOPE". The girl walked off to get her luggage and I never saw her again.
A month later, I committed to raising the money and going to Kenya. All year, this key hung from my bulletin board and it reminded that this girl who I had never met before had hope that I would travel around the world. 9 months later, I'm getting ready to leave Kenya with this key and I thank the Lord for giving me the opportunity to be here.
-Ty
