A surprise trip for my mom's 60s birthday

I made one of the boldest yet most correct decisions of my life. I booked a flight back to China, a total of 30 hours in the air, just to stay for four days. I didn’t even apply for holiday leave at work. Instead, I only told a friend to pick me up from the airport. The flight was on October 1st at 10 p.m. UK time, which worked perfectly for me. I brought my luggage to work, hiding it in the meeting room. A few people noticed but didn’t pay much attention. The flight was smooth, and I slept for most of the trip. When I reached my city’s airport, I video-called my mom, but she didn’t realise I was already there! I just made sure they were at home. I had also ordered flowers and a cake to be picked up at the airport by my friend, who ended up making me wait for an hour due to heavy traffic around the small airport.

After she finally picked me up, I contacted my neighbour to open the gate for me. He even helped me install a VPN since I had a meeting in about an hour.

Everything went smoothly. My neighbour opened the gate, and I took the elevator up to my parents' apartment. I knocked, and my dad answered the door without any suspicion. Later, they told me they thought it was a delivery. The moment my dad opened the door, time seemed to freeze for a second. He shouted, “How did you get here?!” My mom, who was washing her feet while sitting on the sofa, echoed his surprise and soon burst into tears. I gave her the flowers, the cake, and the birthday present, but she ignored them all, hugging me tightly while crying, still in disbelief. I had imagined this surprise moment many times, picturing both of my parents opening the door and hugging me tight. But when it happened, their raw reactions were more real than I could have imagined.

I’m so happy I made this bold decision. I had the best four days with my parents. On the first night, after putting down my bags and gifts, I immediately got to work. I brought my mom a pure gold necklace weighing around 7g, a handkerchief from a friend, and a hand-painted mug set from my boyfriend’s mother. I also brought two bags of coffee beans from Slovakia for my dad, supplements for both of them, and other souvenirs like mint tea and dried mushrooms. I even booked a family photo session for the next day. Since it was during the national holidays, it was a busy time. They changed groups every 30 minutes, passing clothes between them. My dad, who is usually impatient with these kinds of things, cooperated with the photographer’s requests for different poses. He even skipped the photo selection process. I ended up choosing six photos, even though the original plan was for four. I paid for two extra because I loved the different combinations the photographer captured, especially two photos of just my parents—they looked like such a lovely couple.

Despite all the hustle, I started my workday at 5 p.m. China time, realising how much I could accomplish in a single day. I woke up early, got a haircut, went to a restaurant, and even did some shopping with my parents. On the last day, I visited my cousin’s place. Her father is quite ill but looked surprisingly healthy. They prepared delicious food for me, including my second-favorite dish: pickled Chinese cabbage with pork. We also enjoyed some seafood together.

Of course, my favourite meal was my mom’s handmade dumplings with conch filling. She woke up at 4 a.m. to make them for me since my flight was at 9 a.m. and I had to leave around 6 a.m. She packed a lunchbox full of dumplings, snacks, and fruits for me to carry onto the flight. It made the 10-hour journey feel effortless!

Though my visit was short, just four days, it was the most meaningful time spent with my family. Surprisingly, I didn’t experience much jet lag. I woke up in the morning, took a short nap before starting work, finished around midnight, and went straight to bed. It was quite a healthy routine.

I’m so grateful I made this decision. I know I would have regretted missing my mom’s 60th birthday. Although it made my dad a bit jealous...