A couple of months ago I flew into Los Angeles.
After a two-hour queue I finally made it to the front. Fingerprinted, photographed, and then asked a question I wasn’t expecting.
“Have you ever been arrested in Australia?”
I haven’t.
But apparently the computer thought something different.
“Follow me, Sir.”
(Never a good sign when I’m called sir).
Taken to a separate room, passport taken away, signs saying using your phone not allowed.
Was left there for close to half an hour. When I was finally called up, I was asked when I was leaving the US (four days later) and told I was good to go.
I asked why I was flagged … and was told I have a common name. Apparently another Peter Cook was arrested for something. Go figure.
Strangely enough, through the whole thing, I was never that worried.
One way of thinking of my meditation practice is that I’m training to be at peace no matter what is happening around me. And on that day, it worked.
