This is how I see my mom at San Francisco International terminal soon. She will be using her passport for the first time and flying with my brother to Normandy, Paris, London and Edinburgh. Given her advanced years, late 70s, I am both excited for her and worried. I like to see my mother as this statue is, arms strongly raised and in a posture of leaping into the unknown without fear. However since she has never traveled internationally and maybe because I want her first time to be memorable, I am a little worried. My mother is very down to earth and practical. However she has a tendency to follow rules so closely that her experience of something new can be very narrow. She is not spontaneous and her sense of humor is often missing, especially in times of stress. Traveling with my brother, sister, and two sister in laws and father in law could turn into a tough time for her. This group of six all have very different personalities. Also, only my mother and my sister have never tr...