I met the sweetest little girl yesterday. Her name's Nina and she's nine. I've just become her first penfriend.

I was operating a flight back from Perth. Nina's family was seated right at the back where the galley was. They seemed like normal people, traveling back to Switzerland from an extended holiday. It seemed that way until I noticed how this little girl kept smiling at me whenever I passed. After the bulk of work was done, the lull period allowed me some time to interact with her and her family (consisting of her dad, mom and bro). Nina and her brother couldn't speak English too well, so they needed their parents as semi-translators. Ursula (Nina's mom) told me about their holiday and how their family worked...without TV at home, and living on a huge grassland with a fantastic view of the Swiss Alps. They also built their own house. Ursula and her husband believed in teaching her kids through experiences, not the telly. The only things they could watch on TV were educational programs. On their 13-week holiday around New Zealand and Australia, the children were also made to keep a diary. They had to make at least one entry each day.

Anyways, to cut a long story short, I was totally fascinated by the family and its children, so much so that I sorta suggested that I'd like to write to the kids some time. Nina was ecstatic! She actually let out a loud "woo hoo" when her mom told her about the idea. She even said she couldn't wait and wanted to write me there and then...haha. So I gave her some postcards and she actually wrote me a sweet little note in German...how cool is that?

I then wrote my email and home address for Ursula, and she, in turn, gave me a picture of the four of them with their address on the back! Ursula told me that Nina wanted to get a kebaya just like mine from Changi Airport and I promised to bring them to the outlet that sold it. So, after disembarking, I found them waiting for me outside the gate. The whole set of crew were sorta amused that this family was waiting for me. Then, as I went up to meet them, Ursula pulled out a camera and said that the children really wanted pictures to remember me by. The scene was really funny! I felt like some kind of a star for the moment. Before I brought them to the outlet that sold the kebaya, Ursula told me that Nina had a present for me. Nina then gave me this bag with a little kangaroo keychain inside. Her mom said Nina had bought it with her own money in Perth, and had initially wanted to hang it on her school bag when she got back to Switzerland, but later decided to give it to me as a souvenior. I was too overwhelmed for words at that instant. Imagine...a nine-year-old was giving me, a total stranger, a present just because she had a feeling about me. I couldn't cry then, but I was totally welling up inside.

I walked them to the DFS outlet to get the kebaya, and decided to pay for it. Nina seemed a little confused, and her mom really didn't want me to pay, but I did. It really was a touching scene as I left them because we all just hugged and said goodbye. Nina hugged me especially hard.

I'm still reeling from the warm feeling. Although the little kangaroo Nina gave me didn't cost a lot, it meant something to her. To others, my gesture of paying for her clothes might have been a little too much, but when I think of how this girl, so genuinely sweet and innocent, shared something with me, money doesn't even come within sight.

The little kangaroo is the sweetest thing anyone has ever given to me. Just looking at it makes me all warm inside...and makes me wonder what kind of a person I am.

That little girl broke through my shield. And with her, I didn't have to wear any masks.