Hoping for a pleasant flight, I recently boarded a plane from my hometown of Jackson, Mississippi to attend a weekend seminar in Baltimore. Seats filled up quickly and I was forced to take the last vacant seat. Of course, it was the dreaded middle seat.

The woman destined to become one of my seatmates stashed one of her bags under a seat that was designated storage for my bag. I gently told her that I needed a place to put my backpack but she was determined not to part with her extra bag. A flight attendant quickly interceded. The two of them exchanged heated words. People around us began to stare. Suddenly my hopes for a pleasant flight vanished.

My seatmate blurted out,