Pay It Forward: A Tale of 8 Lip Glosses

I consider myself a savvy traveler... I fly enough to know the secret to stepping off the plane looking like a million bucks is all in what you pack in your carry-on bag (see earlier post about the world's greatest black tote) and I usually know the FAA's latest rulings on whether or not I can bring my cuticle cutters and eye lash curler on board. Last week I had to take a day trip and completely forgot that lip gloss is now a no-no. Somehow or another, all 8 of my glosses made it through the first security check (big surprise, right?!?) but on my return flight I was asked to step aside as they ripped through my bag withdrawing the dangerous gloss.

To know me is to appreciate that in my line of work it is necessary to own a billion shades of lip gloss (all the better to determine which colors are best for my customers, of course!) and that I need to have as many color options at my disposal as possible. Given the choice to dump the glosses in the trash amidst the other offending liquid beauty items or mail them to myself, I didn't hesitate to seek out a mail drop in the airport. Unfortunately, I do not carry stamps on my person at all times and had to then go find a stamp machine...which of course was temporarily out of service. After a few stressful moments I realized if I didn't find a solution I'd miss my flight all over some lip gloss. A giant Thank You to Edith, an information desk worker in the St. Louis airport, who sympathized with my plight and offered to mail my stash home. She wouldn't accept money for the postage she would have to put on the envelope, she just smiled and said she understood. While not a crisis or matter of life and death, those glosses are headed home thanks to the kindness of a fellow maiden. I love people who ask for nothing in return and I hope to pay the random act of kindness forward in some manner or another.

Above, The Balm's Plump Your Pucker glosses in three must-have shades I almost lost. $14 each