Besides the imperfections, the golden age of flying, a period in aviation history roughly spanning from the late 1940s to the 1970s, represents a striking chapter in the history of flying. It was a time when air travel captured the imagination of the world and embodied the spirit of adventure, innovation, and aspiration.
Flying was a symbol of prestige and not everyone could afford to purchase a plane ticket, no matter the destination.
Life on board used to be completely different than it is today, and if you feel like you are riding in a bus but in the sky while flying these days, in the past, the experience of flying was all about glamour and luxury.
Credit: Keith Lovegrove
Graham M. Simons, an aviation historian, recalls, “Air travel at that time was something special. It was luxurious. It was smooth. And it was fast.” The seats were spacious, and passengers were offered cocktail lounges, five course meals, and an endless flow of champagne. “People dressed up because of it. The staff was literally wearing haute couture uniforms. And there was much more space: seat pitch – that’s the distance between the seats on the aircraft – was probably 36 to 40 inches. Now it’s down to 28, as they cram more and more people on board.”
Credit: Keith Lovegrove
Nowadays, booking a flight is as easy as a gentle breeze on a sunny day, carrying you effortlessly to your destination. Back in the day, however, the choices were limited and far more expensive. A return ticket from Chicago to Phoenix was priced at $138 as indicated in a TWA brochure from 1955. This may not sound much today, but when adjusted for inflation, this relatively short journey, not even spanning the entire country, would amount to approximately $1,200 in today’s currency.
Guillaume de Syon, an aviation history expert, says, “[Depending] on the route, it was four to five times as expensive to fly in the Golden Age,” which is why flying was only reserved for the wealthiest individuals.
Credit: Keith Lovegrove
The service, as well as the food was top notch. “The airlines were marketing their flights as luxurious means of transport,” Simons added.
Suzy Smith, a former flight attendant, recalled: “We started with canapés, then we came out with a cart with appetizers, which included beluga caviar and foie gras.”
The rules and the security weren’t as strict, so flying brought passengers a sense of freedom. “It was like going to a cocktail party. We had a shirt and tie and a jacket, which sounds ridiculous now, but was expected then,” Keith Lovegrove, a fan of old-fashioned flying said.
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Pan Am was one of the airlines that really stood out. Joan Policastro, who worked for them, described those days like flying with the stars. “My job with Pan Am was an adventure from the very day I started,” she said.
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The flight attendants were dressed to impress. They were expected to provide exceptional service while adhering to strict appearance and behavioral standards. Airlines imposed requirements on attire, hair length, weight, and even marital status. Uniforms became increasingly revealing by the 1960s, reflecting the era’s emphasis on presentation.
Although safety was nowhere near as good as today, everything else made flying an exceptional experience during the Golden Age of flying.
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Just like her mother, Libby Huffer, 45, suffers from a condition known as neurofibromatosis type 1, a genetic disorder that causes non-cancerous growths wherever nerves are present.
Sadly, this condition has left her with over 6,000 tumors on her body, which led to bullying. Libby has been called named over the years, and people went to the extent of branding her “a toad” and “lizard breath.”
Her condition became even worse when she fell pregnant and gave birth to her daughter 23 years ago. At the time, the number of tumors multiplied into thousands.
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Libby has these tumors on every part of her body, including her face. What’s worse, they not only affect her appearance but also cause her chronic pain.
Unable to cope with the condition and they way she looked, Libby decided to start a fundraiser back in 2016 that would help her pay for electrodessication – a pioneering surgery to remove the tumors and prevent them from growing back.
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Luckily, she was able to raise the money, and in June the following years, she had underwent the much-anticipated surgery which helped her get rid of around 1,000 of the tumors on her face and other parts of her body. The surgery was successful, but it left her with many scars which required a CO2 laser treatment.
“There’s still a long way to go to heal the emotional damage I’ve undergone over the years, but I know that will only improve over time,” she said.
“The more surgeries I have, the more confident I will become and that will help to erase some of my painful childhood memories.”
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“Now I don’t have as many large tumours on my face and I feel like I’ve gained more confidence since the surgery.
“I don’t think people are staring at me as much now, I’ll still get kids looking at me occasionally but there’s definitely been a big difference.”
Speaking of the pain and the bullying she has suffered, Libby said, “I have been bullied and victimised my whole life because of the bumps all over my skin, they cover me from head-to-toe.
“In school kids would pick on me all the time, they called me lizard breath and toad.
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At the time she tried to raise money for her surgery, Libby opened up about her struggles and asked from people to help her feel normal again.
“The tumours all over my back cause chronic pain, the nerves in my feet have a tingling sensation all the time which make it hard to sleep,” she said.
“They can even hurt from simple things like a hug or even if water from the shower hits them in a certain way.”
“But I am a human being too, all I want is to be adored and cared for like anyone else.
“Instead of making comments, I wish people would talk to me rather than stare like I’m a circus freak, it just makes me feel really uncomfortable.”
The surgery that changed her life cost her $23,500 and let her live without the stares and taunts from people for the first time in three decades.
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When people get old, some families struggle with the demand of eldercare while others remain dedicated to supporting and providing for their elderly relatives.
Paul and Rachel, a brother and sister, got into an argument over their elderly grandmother Eleanor.
The old lady spent her days painting, and according to Paul, she became a burden because she didn’t contribute to the finances of the family. Hearing Paul’s words, Rachel was shocked. “Paul, she’s our grandmother. She raised us, remember?” she said. But Paul was determined to kick his grandma out of his home. “That was then. Things are different now,” he said, crossing his arms. “She doesn’t bring anything to the table anymore. She just sits there, painting and wasting time.”
“Those paintings mean something to her,” Rachel said. “And they could mean something to us if we let them.”
“Sentimental nonsense. I need to think about the future, Rachel. We can’t afford dead weight.”
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Realizing he was no longer planning to take care of their grandma, Rachel found herself wondering what life would bring for the elderly lady. It was then that Paul suggested Rachel taking grandma Eleanor in. “She can stay with you,” he said bluntly. “You seem to care so much.”
Rachel agreed. There was no way that she would leave her grandma without a roof over her head, although her brother’s demand left her with a bitter taste in her mouth.
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Grandma Eleanor got the spare room in Rachel’s house. It became a nice place that felt cozy and felt like home. She could paint there, with the help of Rachel’s children who adored her and loved listening to her stories.
“Thank you, Rachel. You’ve always had a kind heart.”
“Grandma, you don’t need to thank me. This is your home too,” Rachel said, hugging her tightly.
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As time passed by and Eleanor made a number of beautiful painting, Rachel’s children made her post them on the social media.
To Eleanor’s surprise, her work attracted plenty of attention, and one day, she received an invitation by the local gallery to exhibit her paintings.
The weeks leading up to Eleanor’s solo exhibition were a flurry of activity. She worked tirelessly because she not only painted, but wrote the stories behind each of her paintings.
On the big night, the gallery was filled with people and almost every painting was sold. Rachel even received several commissions, securing her financial independence.
“Thank you all for believing in me,” the sweet grandma told the crowd, tears of joy streaming down her face.
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When the word of her success reached Paul, he suddenly showed at Rachel’s door. When she opened it, the first thing he said was that he was sorry for kicking their grandma out of his house. “I made a mistake,” he kept repeating while looking down. “I shouldn’t have kicked her out, I see that now.”
“It’s a little late for that, Paul,” Rachel told him. “You showed your true colors when you turned your back on family.”
Speaking to his grandma, Paul said he wanted to make things right. “No, Paul. You only want to make things right because you see my success now. Where was this concern when I needed a home, when all I had was my art and my memories?” Eleanor said.
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“I was wrong,” Paul said with a breaking voice. “I see that now. I’ve lost so much because of my actions.”
“You lost our respect,” Eleanor added. “And that’s something you can’t buy back with apologies or money. Family is about love and support, not about what you can get from them.”
Realizing that his apologies weren’t enough to rebuild the bridges he had ruined, Paul turned around and left.
Eleanor then turned to her granddaughter and told her that she was thankful for everything she had done for her. But it was Rachel who was grateful because her grandma taught her to cherish the people who truly matter.
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Eleanor’s career as a painter blossomed. People loved her work and she sold plenty of paintings. As of Paul, he only witnessed his grandma’s success from afar. Hopefully, he learned a valuable life lesson.
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The “hush money” trial involving former president and business mogul Donald Trump attracted the worldwide attention.
A Manhattan jury found him guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records, making him the first ever president in US history to be convicted of a felony. Judge Juan Merchan set a sentencing hearing for July 11.
Trump pleaded not guilty when he was arraigned last year.
“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial,” Trump told reporters upon leaving the courtroom. “The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people. They know what happened, and everyone knows what happened here.”
Following the verdict, Trump repeated several false claims regarding the trial, angrily complaining about the gag order he still is under. Further, he claimed he wanted to testify, but his lawyers advised him against doing so.
“I would have testified. I wanted to testify,” he said. “The theory is you never testify because as soon as you testify — anybody, if it were George Washington, don’t testify because they’ll get you on something that you said slightly wrong, and then they sue you for perjury.”
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Trump then blamed current president Biden and his people for the outcome of his trial.
“They are in total conjunction with the White House and the DOJ. Just so you understand, this is all done by Biden and his people,” Trump said of the court.
The case against Donald Trump was brought by the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and prosecuted under New York state law, which means it was not connected with the White House nor the DOJ, as per NPR.
The former president could be sentenced to probation or up to 4 years on each count in state prison (offering a maximum of 20 years). At the moment, however, he remains a free man since prosecutors did not ask for the opinion-dividing ex-president to post any bond.
The verdict only only affects Trump and his plan for the upcoming elections, but his entire family too, and that certainly includes his wife Melania and his youngest son Barron.
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Melania was said to be furious over the trial during which she never appeared by her husband’s side in the courtroom.
As of Barron, being the son of Donald Trump, he has been exposed to media scrutiny despite his mother’s efforts to keep him out of the spotlight. She does her best to protect him from oft-extreme media coverage concerning his famous father.
As per the Daily Mail, Melania has locked herself in a “tight” bubble behind the gates of the family’s residence at Mar-a Lago in Florida while her husband’s trial was got underway.
What’s most, she prohibited her husband from speaking about their son in public. According to Melania’s former aid, Stephanie Grisham, the former first lady was far from happy with Donald speaking about Barron in the context of his trials.
“He talked about missing Barron’s graduation to the cameras and then again on Truth Social because it caused a lot of coverage about that, and it’s just not something she would have liked,” Grisham said.
Official portrait of President Donald J. Trump, Friday, October 6, 2017. (Official White House photo by Shealah Craighead)
In the wake of Donald Trump’s guilty verdict, Melania and Barron were said to have been at Trump Tower in Manhattan, as per Page Six.
“Everyone has gathered around Trump at Trump Tower,” a source told the news outlet.
“It’s like a funeral … There was hope all day and then none!” another person said, speaking of the time the verdict came.
“Everyone says Melania and the entire family are rallying around the former president,” the insider added. “But the mood is nonetheless gloomy and gloomier right now. It’s definitely viewed as a downer at Mar-a-Lago.”
“Everyone is upset. Trump talked to both Melania and all his children, including Ivanka. [But] Trump says the real verdict will take place in November when the people vote;” the insider concluded. According to another source, Donald’s friends described the outcome as “not unexpected,” and that they were well “prepared for the next step,” Page Six reported.
NEW YORK, NY – JULY 20: Barron Trump is seen at the funeral of Ivana Trump on July 20, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by JNI/Star Max/GC Images)
Last weekend, Trump gave interview to Fox News, and provided an update on his wife.
“She’s fine, but I think it’s very hard for her,” he said of Melania, adding that “in many ways, it’s tougher on them [his family] than it is me.”
Until now, regardless of her absence at the courtroom, Melania has stayed by her husband through his ups and downs, but whether the verdict would change things between them is something we are yet to witness.
With her allegedly renegotiating her prenup last year, in case of a divorce, she and Barron would be left with millions of dollars.
Stephanie Clifford, the adult film actress and exotic dancer known as Stormy Daniels, who took the stand in Donald Trump‘s hush money trial and whose testimony involved details of her journey into exotic dancing, provided information about her encounter with Trump in July 2006. She also urged Melania to seek separation from her husband.
“I don’t know what their agreement may or may not be, but Melania needs to leave him. Not because of what he did with me or other women but because he is a convicted felon,” Daniels told the Mirror.
“It’s been proven he is abusive; he was found liable for sexual assault and tax fraud and is now a criminal. He’s neither Teflon Don nor Teflon Con anymore.”
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And as sources and insiders claim Melania is furious over the trial and the verdict, not much is known about how Barron feels.
His next step in life is attending college. Donald and his children, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Tiffany Trump, have all graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, but doesn’t necessarily mean Barron will make the same choice. In fact, just days after his verdict, Trump spoke publicly about his son and said, “He’s amazing actually, in a certain way.” Further, Trump said on Fox & Friends Weekend Sunday, “[Barron]’s tall, good-looking…a very good student. And he’s applied to colleges and gets into everywhere he goes.
“He’s very sought after from a standpoint, he’s a very smart guy. He’s a very tall guy. And he’s a great kid. He’s cool, he’s pretty cool, I’ll tell ya.”
Trump has highlighted his son’s height many times in the past and during an occasion he said that it was his grandma’s food that made him grow that tall.
The former president has always spoken dearly of his wife’s parents, especially her now-late mother Amalija Knavs.
“Great people, great parents to all of us, really. Great parents, but also to Barron. Boy, did she take care of Barron,” he said.
“That’s how he got so tall, he only ate her food.”
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Hanna and Ryan met by pure chance. Their encounter could have ended totally differently after he crashed into the bouquet of flowers she had bought for her friend who had her directorial debut with a musical at the local theater.
Instead, they introduced themselves and both agreed they weren’t fans of crowds.
From that moment on, they stayed in touch and started dating. It only took Ryan three months to pop the question, and Hanna was quick to say yes.
Their romance was picture perfect. Hanna’s parents accepted Ryan and were happy their only daughter found someone who make her world complete. They accepted Ryan as the son they never had, and his parents felt the same for Hanna.
Hanna felt she was loved and appreciated by Ryan’s parents. She and his mom, Mrs. Audrey Cole, would have their nails done together, and did some fun stuff.
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Everything seemed like a dream and Hanna couldn’t wait to finally say “I do,” to the man she knew was her soulmate. However, she ended up saying “I don’t” and leaving the church on what was supposed to be the happiest day of her life.
Before the wedding, just as the ceremony was about to start, Audrey pulled Hanna aside and said, “Darling, can we chat for a moment?” Hanna said yes, but asked from her mother-in-law to wait until her glam team was done with her hair and makeup. Something about Audrey’s demeanor made Hanna anxious. She could see from the reflection in the mirror that Audrey wasn’t at ease as her eyes moved around the room quickly, often settling on the wedding dress hanging from its hook.
Moments later, as Hanna’s mom was buttoning up her wedding dress, Audrey got closer and said, “There’s no easy way for me to say this.” Hanna was surprised. She thought Audrey would make a comment about how nice the dress fit her as she hadn’t been to any of the fittings, but her future mother-in-law had something else in mind.
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At that moment, Audrey took her phone out and said, “There are videos on this phone that will explain everything. I am so sorry, Hanna, but Ryan needs to be caught out.”
Hanna’s mind raced. She couldn’t possibly imagine what was on that phone.
The video showed a woman, almost naked, and a man whose face wasn’t visible but Audrey claimed to be her son’s.
“Are you sure?” Hanna asked. “This is him?”
“Well, look at the jacket on the bed,” she said. “Isn’t that the one you got him?”
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Hanna pressed play again, and looked at the jacket. The hotel room also looked familiar—she was so sure that they had been there before.
“But Ryan’s face isn’t in the frame,” Hanna said.
“Hanna,” Audrey said slowly. “It’s right in front of you. You can choose to overlook it, but think of the man that you would be marrying if you choose to ignore it. Could you live with yourself knowing that? Could you live with him?”
Doing her best not to cry, Hanna said she couldn’t live with someone who had betrayed her like that.
“You’re calling off the wedding?” Audrey asked, hope lining her voice.
“No,” Hanna. “I’m going to walk down that aisle. I’m going to walk to the man who has been unfaithful to me. And when the time comes for our vows, I’ll break it off then.”
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As she walked down the aisle, Hanna experienced a roller coaster of emotions.
Ryan squeezed her hands, but all she could think of was that video. When it came to their wows and the question whether she takes Ryan to be her husband, she answered “I don’t.”
Ryan couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Thinking it was a joke, he asked the priest to ask her again, but Hanna’s answer was the same. When Ryan demanded explanation, Hanna said his mother had it. Then, Audrey took her phone again and showed the video. Looking at it, Ryan started saying that it wasn’t him but Hanna refused to listen and left the church, her parents walking after her.
“Hanna, please,” he said. “I need you to believe me.”
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Hanna refused to take any of Ryan’s calls and even blocked his number. But three days later, he appeared at her parents’ doorstep with flowers and food. He wanted to talk to Hanna and explain everything.
It turned out that Audrey, who was a high-school teacher, orchestrated everything in order to ruin the wedding. Those people in the video were two students of hers. She used Ryan’s jacket to make everything more reliable.
Hanna was surprised. Audrey always claimed she loved her as the daughter she never had. She was always nice and full of understanding. Was it possible that she was only acting the entire time?
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According to Ryan, she did that because she didn’t want her son to get married because she believed she would lose him. Also, she thought Hanna was unworthy of her son. She believed at first that their relationship wasn’t serious, but when the time came for them to marry, she panicked.
Hanna forgave Ryan, and he forgave her for not trusting him. They are still together and wait to see what future holds for them.
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Michelle’s world crushed when she saw her stepdad collapse on the sofa and started crying. She couldn’t understand what was going on until she noticed he held a note in his hand. As she navigated her wheelchair between the sofa and the armchair, Michelle managed to grab the piece of paper which disturbed her stepdad. He tried to take it away from her, but she still managed to read it.
It was her mom’s handwriting. “I can’t do it anymore. You know I never wanted children, but I tried my best to care for Michelle anyway. That burden has taken the best years of my life from me. But now that she’s sixteen, I’ve decided it’s time I pursue my dream of becoming an actress before it’s too late…” Reading these words, Michelle felt excruciating pain. It was as though someone stabbed her in the heart.
With tears rolling down her face, she turned to her stepdad Eugene and asked him, “And what about you? Am I a burden to you too? It’s not like I’m your real daughter so nobody would blame you if you dumped me somewhere like a dog.”
“Never!” Eugene rushed over, dropped to one knee, and wrapped his arms around his step-daughter.
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She hugged him back and started thinking of her life. She didn’t wish to be disabled and depend on anyone, but that’s what life served her with.
“Look at me, Shelly, and listen close, okay? This is…well, it’s an awful and shocking situation, but you’ve done nothing wrong. It will be tough, but we’ll carry on without her, okay?” Eugene assured her as she was trying to collect herself from the shock.
At that moment, instead of feeling sorry for herself, Michelle promised herself that she would do all it takes to become a successful individual. She was determined to prove her mother wrong, because she wasn’t a burden, she was just a person who was born with disability.
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Michelle graduated top of her class and was accepted at several universities, many of which offered her scholarship. She, however, was determined to purse a career in the world of film, and dreamed of becoming a successful film producer. But deep down, she dreamed of meeting her mother again and even imagined situations in which she would audition for one of the films she would one day produce.
Her stepdad was aware that Michelle wanted this career because of her mother, although she never confessed that.
Sadly, her college days turned into a nightmare when she got into an argument with a classmate named Lila.
Lila was a popular girl who wanted things done her way, and Michelle confronted her several times. One time, the two argued whether physical film was being superior to digital shooting.
“I think there are benefits and drawbacks to both. Although there’s a certain look and feel you can only get from physical film, digital allows you a greater range of editing options that might be more suitable for the project you’re filming,” Michelle shared her opinion.
“Only if you’re lazy,” Lila snapped. She didn’t expect the new girl in a wheelchair to challenge her opinion like that. How dare she? “Digital can never beat the authenticity of a movie shot on actual film. It’s just not realistic,” Lila said angrily.
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As the discussion became heated, Lila got angrier and once the class was over, she confronted Michelle and started bullying her together with her friends.
At one point, they pushed Michelle into the closet room and turned the lights off. It wasn’t until two hours later that the janitor found Michelle, alone and scared.
The following day, Michelle turned to Mr. Abubakar, a lawyer, and told him she wanted to sue Lila. Mr. Abubakar took the time to listen to Michelle and told her she had a case, but Lila was coming from a wealthy family, so she shouldn’t expect much from the lawsuit. Michelle wanted to proceed with it anyways.
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In the days to come, she stared reading law books, researching legal procedures and precedents for assault cases like hers. When she returned to Mr. Abubakar’s office, she brought a folder of notes and a legal book she’d loaned from the college library. He was stunned by the work she did. Everything was perfectly prepared, as though Michelle was a real lawyer.
“This is useful.” He smiled at Michelle. “I’d already noted some of these cases, but there are others here that I can reference too.”
“Great.” Michelle grinned. “I was a bit concerned it might be too basic.”
“No, you’ve done a good job here, just like a trained paralegal. Have you been taking classes in law?”
Michelle shook her head. “I just have a knack for research.”
Looking at the work she had done, he told her that she could be a successful lawyer had she studied law.
Michelle frowned. “What do you mean?”
“You have a knack for law. I noticed it while we were putting your case together.” Mr. Abubakar moved closer. “I’ve heard bad stories about the kids that go to the arts section of your college. You don’t belong among cruel people like that, Michelle. You could become a great lawyer and fight against the injustices in this system with me.”
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Michelle was intrigued but not that interested. However, once she won the case over Lila, she experienced even more bullying by Lila’s friends who held a grudge against Michelle because Lila got expelled.
It was then that she decided to quit studying film, and started studying law instead. Before she made this huge decision, she consulted with Mr. Abubakar to agreed to mentor her.
Seven years later, Michelle found herself moving from a huge law firm to opening an office herself. She was very successful, and even had money to undergo a surgery which was very successful.
One day, she placed her wheelchair at the corner of her office, and walked to the table. She was getting used to walking after spending her entire time in a wheelchair. She changed her style, dyed her hair blonde, and got read of her glasses. Michelle looked like a completely different person, so different that her own mother didn’t recognize her years after she had abandoned her.
As she was going through some paperwork, someone knocked on the door of Michelle’s law office. It was a familiar face, her mother Iris.
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But this woman didn’t look like a successful actress, which made Michelle believe that she didn’t make it in the film industry.
Just as Michelle believed her mother would recognize her and maybe apologize for abandoning her, Iris said, “Is it true that you help people for free if they can’t afford to pay you? I don’t have a job and I don’t have any money.” Hearing this, Michelle realized her mother didn’t recognize her so she decided not to reveal who she really was.
“I guess I was mistaken.” Iris rose to leave, but Michelle gestured to her to wait.
“No, you’re right. I just…” Michelle hesitated on the verge of confronting the woman but didn’t know how. It was easier to focus on the job.
“I do work pro bono,” Michelle continued. “Please tell me why you need legal help.”
It turned out that Iris drove drunk and crashed into the car of a wealthy businessman who now wanted to throw the book at her.
“Honestly, I don’t think I can get you off entirely, but we can push for a reduced sentence, possibly even community service. I’ll need more details but first, can I offer you something to drink?” As she returned with refreshments for them, Michelle stumbled. Iris caught her elbow and asked if she was okey, to what Michelle pointed to the wheelchair and said she was still getting used to walking. But even that wasn’t a hint enough for Iris to recognize the child she had given birth to.
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When the court date arrived, Michelle fought hard and managed to lower Iris’ sentence to a year of prison time or paying a fine.
“I still have no money to pay the fine,” Iris sobbed. “I’ll have to go to jail after all.”
At that moment, Michelle turned to the judge and said, “If the court will permit it, I’d like to pay the fine on my client’s behalf so she can go home immediately.”
“Why would you do this for me?” Iris wrapped her hand around Michelle’s wrist.
“You really don’t recognize me at all?” Michelle tipped her head. “This may refresh your memory.”
She then took out her mom’s note in which she called her a burden. The paper was creased from being read and crumpled up several times over the years, but Iris’ words were still perfectly readable.
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“This can’t be real.” Iris stared at her openmouthed.
“You can keep that, I don’t need it anymore.” Michelle started to pack up her things. “I’m sorry you didn’t get to be an actress after all, but I hope you enjoyed living for yourself.”
“Wait, Michelle. We need to talk.”
“No.” Michelle shook her head. “You didn’t even recognize me, your own daughter. And I know I don’t look exactly the same as the kid you walked out on, but come on!”
“Please, just let me explain.”
Michelle then left the courtroom and never looked back.
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Breastfeeding in public is a topic that still causes stir. While some believe women should breastfeed their babies whenever they are hungry, others are convinced that doing that in public is embarrassing. The latter probably don’t understand that breastfeeding is a natural and essential practice for both the mother and child.
The truth is that many mothers feel uneasy about nursing in public because of all the stares and comments, but not this mother.
Trinati is a mom of a 17-month-old daughter whom she breastfeeds whenever the little one feels like eating. However, this have put her in situations which she didn’t like, such as employees at stores asking from her to hide inside broom closets in order to feed her baby.
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Holding onto the belief that breastfeeding is a natural and beautiful process no mom should ever be ashamed of, Trinati decided to do something about raising awareness.
One time, while breastfeeding her daughter at Costco, she asked from her son to take a picture that she later posted on the social media. “I never shy away from providing my children with what they may need from me based on our surroundings.”
The thing is that apart from facing stares and judgement from strangers, she also gets a lot of questions from her friends and family. When they ask, “How long are you going to do ‘that’ for?” her answer is always, “As long as she needs me to!” And then, the jokes follow, with some laughing that she would probably be breastfeeding her daughter until she’s in kindergarten.
This mom is fed up of people sexualizing her breastfeeding and judging her for it. She said in an interview, “Really? Have you SEEN breastfeeding breasts? My nipples are very far from looking like something someone may fantasize about! Ha!”
She went on, “These are basically udders right now. Get over yourself! I’m not trying to steal your man or lady with these bad girls! To me, they have become so far from feeling like a sexual part of my body. Right now they belong to my child for nourishment, both physically and emotionally.”
She wants people to understand that breastfeeding is a natural way to nourish a child and should not be viewed as sexual.
“I don’t expect all men or those who have never breastfed to understand the ways in which mothers have the endurance to deal with nipple-pinching or straight-up acrobatics while breastfeeding,” she explained. “I have received the strangest glances and awkward giggles when people watch my 1.5-year-old standing on my lap while suckling … sometimes on one leg!”
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“I had my son take that photo of us in Costco because I never want to forget (and [I want to] show my daughter in the future) the lengths we, as mothers, will go to when ensuring our kids are well looked after no matter the situation,” she said.
“My baby’s needs come waaaaaay before anyone else’s attempts to make me feel inappropriate for this sometimes-public act of nourishing and/or comforting my children,” she wrote in the caption for the Instagram post.
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Trinati wants her children to know they they would always be her priority regardless of people’s judgement.
“Trust is a fundamental tool for developing healthy relationships and it begins with the care that we receive in childhood,” she said. “For me, breastfeeding demonstrates this to my children, and for this reason, I will never feel shame for allowing a baby of mine to do this with me in any environment.”
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Emma Pallant-Browne is a celebrated athlete who used a photo of her, which some dubbed “unfortunate,” in order to spread a message about the female body and how extraordinary women are.
Among the rest, Emma won a silver medal in the World Long Distance Triathlon Championships in 2022, two medals (silver in 2017 and bronze in 2022) in the championship known as Ironman 70.3, and a gold medal at the European Championship.
Other than that, she has recently participated in the PTO Tour European Open in Ibiza, which took place a few days after she won the Dualthlon World Championship, and ended up on the fourth place.
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While taking part in the latest competition in Ibiza, a photo of her taken by a professional photographer were uploaded on the official site of the event. The photo seemed a regular one until another contestant, Xavier Coppock, highlighted something he noticed which later became a huge topic of conversation.
Namely, Emma was competing in a blue and pink swimsuit, but there was also a red stain visible which she got because she had period during the race.
“Not the most flattering photo of Emma, surely they can crop it a little better,” Coppock wrote under the photo, trying to stand up for Emma. However, although she was flattered by his intention to protect her, Emma didn’t mind the photo because as she stated, women having their period while competing wasn’t anything unusual. Replying to Coppock’s comment, Emma explained that she had her period and although she used tampon, there were days when even the most absorbent one would not do the job for more than 3 hours.
A couple of days later, she posted the same photo on her Instagram account with the caption, “Celebrating the amazing women in sport and the equally amazing men who champion them. Humbled by the number of messages I’ve had from both men and women about the unglamorous reality of racing on your period.”
Further, Emma wrote, “I raced in a swimsuit because I over heat and pass out in hot races, on my period my body temp is also higher. I have a full length suit for the cooler races in dark colours but the light colours we were experimenting with for the cooling effect. It is dark at the bottom and at the back but my bike position has changed and now I roll more forward (lesson learnt for next years suit design).
“A lot of the photos you can’t see anything, pouring water over yourself at aid stations does the trick and if it doesn’t you end up with one photo like this but the idea to edit it means there is something wrong with it. If you wrote to me saying 99% of the women you know would be mortified at this then that is exactly why I am sharing this, because there really is nothing wrong.”
She added, “Its natural and coming from eating issues as an endurance runner when I was growing up where I didn’t have my period, I now see it as beautiful. So if you have a photo like this, save it, cherish it, remember how you performed on a tough day because one day you might just be able to help someone else with it.”
Speaking of her choice of outfit, she explained that wearing a swimsuit suits her best because she sweats a lot and it provides her with the most amount of safety and comfort when she competes.
“This is a women’s sport and the more barriers we can break, the better. After a long career, you end up with a photo like this, but the idea of editing it means there is something wrong with it. I share it because there’s really nothing wrong with it, it’s a natural thing,” she wrote.
“So if you have a photo like this, save it, cherish it, and remember how you performed on a tough day because one day you might just be able to help someone else with it,” the celebrated athlete concluded in her powerful message she extended to other women.
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