Most middle schoolers probably have other things on their minds besides building houses.
But Luke Thill, a 13-year-old from Dubuque, Iowa, is unlike any other middle schooler you’ve seen before.
This talented and proactive boy has crafted his very own little house — in his parent’s backyard.
The project cost him roughly $1,500 USD — and now Luke is living his dream in his little cottage.
Come on in and have a look at what it looks like inside.
I think it’s safe to say that Luke is not like many of his 13-year-old peers. In a time of iPads, smartphones, gadgets, and X-Boxes, this young man decided to keep himself busy in a different and more ‘old-fashioned’ way. As he explains on his YouTube channel, his desire to build a small house grew out of feeling bored last summer.
After some thorough research, Luke had a pretty good idea of how he was going to put his plan into action.
The Process
It took him about a year to get the money and materials he needed to build the house. Luke mowed lawns, started a fund-raiser online, and ran errands for anyone who needed help in the neighborhood to make money.
An electrician Luke was friends with helped him install the electricity in exchange for Luke cleaning his garage out, for instance.
Luke used about 75 percent recycled material, many of which were things left over from his grandma’s house. The front door of the house was a gift from an uncle’s friend.
The 89-square-foot house is 10 feet long and 5 1/2 feet wide, with electricity but no plumbing, so no water or bathroom… yet.
“I liked the minimalism,” he told The Des Moines Register. “And I wanted to have a house without a huge mortgage.”
Luke has made several video clips and posted them online, where he talks about his project as many have grown curious about the little house.
As you can imagine, Luke also received some help from his parents, both financially and with the building itself.
But dad Greg made sure that it would be Luke himself who would pay for most of his project and also build most of it himself.
“It was a chance for a kid to do something more than play video games or sports,” Greg told The Des Moines Register. “It teaches life lessons.”
Teenager’s Dream
The house is in many ways a teenager’s dream, an oasis where you can chill and hang out in. It has a microwave, a TV, and a loft with a bed.
There’s even a barbecue and flowers at the back.
Luke usually does his homework after school at his new house and some nights during the week he gets to sleep there.
Luke already has aspirations to build another house — one that’s a little bigger for when he starts college. He also hopes to inspire others to follow their dreams:
“I want to show kids it’s possible to build at this age,” he says in one of his videos.
You can really see how proud he is about his project below.
Luke’s story is a great example of what a child can achieve with a clear goal, a strong worth ethic, and support from home.
3 Incredible Stories Shared by Stewardesses from the Business Class Cabin
Have you ever wondered what wild secrets fly above the clouds in business class? Stewardesses are the ultimate keepers of sky-high stories, and their tales range from the heartwarming surprises to jaw-dropping twists that you’d never expect.
In this collection, we’re peeking into the fascinating world of the business class cabin where the drinks flow, the demands are high, and no two flights are ever the same.
So sit back, fasten your seatbelt, and enjoy these three unforgettable stories shared by flight attendants who’ve seen it all from 30,000 feet.
Two smiling flight attendants | Source: Midjourney
Millionaire Mocks Poor Woman with 3 Kids on Business Class Flight until Pilot Interrupts Him
From the moment the mother with three little kids boarded, I could tell it was her first time in business class. The way she guided the kids, eyes wide with excitement, reminded me of my own first flight years ago.
But while I was all set to make their experience great, the man in the next seat was far from pleased.
“Are you kidding me?” he scoffed as she took the seat beside him, wrangling her bags and kids with the careful grace that only a mom could manage.
A mom with three kids in an airplane | Source: Midjourney
“Miss,” he barked at me. “You’re really letting them sit here?”
“Sir, these seats are hers. She has every right to sit here,” I said, offering him my calmest smile, but he just rolled his eyes.
He didn’t let up, not even when she apologized for the trouble.
A smiling flight attendant | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, trust me, I have a meeting to join on this flight,” he grumbled. “And I’m going to need silence. Absolute silence. These kids won’t be silent, I can tell.”
I watched as the woman settled her kids, motioning for them to stay quiet. They did their best, though the youngest couldn’t help the occasional squeal of excitement when he saw the clouds out of the window.
Still, the businessman acted like they were playing drums in his ears, dramatically sighing every few minutes.
A grumpy business man | Source: Midjourney
About an hour into the flight, I brought him his coffee and cookies, trying to smooth things over.
“Thank you, miss,” he said with a dismissive tone, barely looking up. I gave the kids fruit cups, thinking that they would be the quietest snacks for them. I didn’t want the businessman to lash out at them over nothing.
But when his conference call ended, he seemed pleased enough to answer when the mother leaned over to ask about the designs in his notebook.
Fruit cups in an airplane | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, those?” he chuckled. “My company makes fabrics. Real fabrics,” he added, eyeing her clothes in a snooty way that made my stomach twist.
She looked down, fiddling with a bracelet on her wrist, trying to brush off his words.
“Actually,” she said softly, “I own a small boutique in Texas. We make a lot of our own designs. It’s nothing compared to what you do, I’m sure. But it’s something that I’m proud of.”
A woman looking out of an airplane window | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, I’m sure it is,” he sneered. “But you see, I just closed a million-dollar deal with one of the biggest design firms in the world. International Fashion Week big. I doubt a… boutique can even imagine what that’s like.”
He said the word “boutique” like it was a dirty word, and I could see her cheeks color.
But she didn’t snap back at him. Instead, she just nodded.
“Well, congratulations, sir,” she said simply.
A business man sitting in an airplane | Source: Midjourney
I admired her patience. I was about to check on her when the captain’s voice came over the speaker.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re beginning our descent to JFK,” he announced. “I’d also like to thank my beautiful wife, Debbie, and our three kids, who are here with us today. Deb, I couldn’t have done this without you.”
I glanced over at the woman and watched her eyes widen in shock. Her hand flew to her mouth as her cheeks flushed with surprise. She turned to her kids, who were giggling in excitement.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
“And a special thank you to our passengers in first class. Thank you for making my family’s first business class flight one to remember. She has taken a huge leap of faith today, as it’s my first flight back after a long break. Deb, you’re my rock.”
The entire cabin was silent as the captain emerged from the cockpit. He held a small ring box, grinning ear-to-ear as he knelt before her.
A pilot holding a ring box | Source: Midjourney
“Debbie,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “Will you spend forever with me… again? And, don’t worry! My co-pilot is in charge of the plane!”
Passengers clapped, and I caught more than a few teary smiles.
“Yes!” Debbie exclaimed.
As for the businessman? He just sat there, gaping. His smug expression was nowhere in sight. And I couldn’t resist glancing at him, raising my brow. Soon, the flight’s descent was over, and we were almost ready to disembark.
A business man looking out of a window in an airplane | Source: Midjourney
“You know,” Debbie said, turning to the businessman. “Not everyone values money above all else. Some of us just value the people we love. And that? That’s something money can’t buy.”
I watched her gather her children and walk off with her husband, leaving the businessman looking small in a way I doubted he’d ever felt before.
As for me, I couldn’t help but smile. Not all stories end perfectly, but this one?
It was as close as it gets.
A smiling flight attendant | Source: Midjourney
Woman Leaves Newborn on Business Class Plane Seat, Decides to Find Him 13 Years Later
From the moment I spotted the baby left behind on that business class seat, something inside me knew he’d been abandoned.
Working as a flight attendant, I’d encountered plenty of unusual situations, but never had I found a tiny newborn left alone, bundled in a soft blue blanket with nothing but a note beside him.
A newborn baby in an airplane | Source: Midjourney
I remember how quiet the cabin felt as I read it. The handwriting was shaky, but her words were clear:
I’m a young mother who just cannot provide a good life for him. Please, take him in, cherish him… I’ve started calling him Matthew. But that’s not important… Just make sure that his last name is Harris.
My heart twisted as I held him. It was such a raw and heartbreaking choice for a mother to make.
A flight attendant holding a baby | Source: Midjourney
I didn’t know her story, but I knew in that moment that I wanted to be part of this baby’s life. I didn’t have any children of my own, and when I looked into his tiny, sleeping face, I felt an overwhelming urge to protect him.
My husband, Deon, and I had always dreamed of adopting, and I felt that maybe, somehow, fate had put him in our lives.
The adoption process was long and complex, but we named him Matthew, just as his mother had named him, and we kept Harris as his second name. Deon wanted us to give him our name.
A baby in a crib | Source: Midjourney
“Lincy,” he said, “this is our son now. As much as his birth mother wanted Harris to be his last name, she’s not here. We can compromise and give it to him as a second name. But Thomas will be his last name.”
It was also important to us that Matthew grew up knowing about his mother’s note. When he was thirteen, I finally shared that part of his story.
Our boy took it well, nodding thoughtfully as he held the note.
A little boy sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney
“Did she love me?” he asked, and I could only tell him what I believed was true.
“Yes, my love,” I said. “She loved you enough to make the hardest choice of all.”
Years passed, and Matthew thrived. He excelled in school, made friends easily, and became the center of our world.
But I could always sense a lingering curiosity in him about where he came from, a desire to fill in the missing pieces.
A little boy sitting in a classroom | Source: Midjourney
Then, one afternoon, my phone rang. I was on holiday, finally choosing to be on the ground instead of in the skies. It was an unknown caller, but when I picked up, a nervous voice stammered.
“Is this Lincy? The flight attendant? I think… I think you adopted my son.”
There was a pause as my heart skipped a beat. For the past thirteen years, this was a call that I had feared.
“Yes, Matthew? He’s my son now.”
A woman talking on the phone | Source: Midjourney
The woman on the other end introduced herself as Rhonda. She sounded relieved and terrified all at once. She told me her story in halting sentences: how she’d left her father’s house when she got pregnant at nineteen, been rejected by her boyfriend, and how she struggled alone in New York City.
She said she regretted leaving Matthew every single day but had never had the means to find him until now.
“Would you allow me to meet him?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper. “Just once. I just want him to know why I did what I did.”
A woman talking on the phone | Source: Midjourney
I hesitated but finally agreed. I could tell that this was something Matthew needed, too, even if he didn’t know it yet.
A week later, we arranged a meeting at a quiet café. When Rhonda walked in, she looked nervous and held a small photo album in her hands. Matthew looked her over, curious but guarded.
I didn’t know what to expect, but I could feel my heart in my throat as I watched them. I would have rather sat through turbulence than this.
The interior of a coffee shop | Source: Midjourney
“Hi, Matthew,” Rhonda began. “I’m… the woman who left you on that plane. I know it’s unforgivable, but I did it because I thought you’d have a better life without me.”
Matthew sat quietly for a moment.
“Why didn’t you just try to raise me?” he asked.
Rhonda’s eyes filled with tears.
An upset woman sitting in a coffee shop | Source: Midjourney
“I was homeless, my father kicked me out. I had no support. I didn’t know how I’d survive, let alone care for you. But it’s something I regret every day.”
The tension eased slightly, and I watched as they spoke.
As we left, Matthew gave her a small nod.
A boy sitting at a coffee shop | Source: Midjourney
“Thanks… for coming back, I guess,” he said.
Today, Matthew is twenty-three, and he’s grown into an incredible young man. He’s forgiven Rhonda, even if I’m the only one he calls “Mom.”
I love my job; it’s been rewarding in many ways. But when I applied for a job as a flight attendant, I would never have guessed that I would find my son on a plane.
A smiling young man | Source: Midjourney
I Served a Rich Couple on a Plane, Next Day My Mom Introduced Me to Her Young Fiancé from the Same Plane
As a flight attendant, I’ve seen my share of surprises, but nothing like this. High above the clouds, I served a sharply dressed man, Edwin, and his stunning date, Isabella, in business class.
He gifted her a necklace in a velvet box, and I remember how her eyes sparkled as he fastened it around her neck. They looked like a picture-perfect couple.
I remember wondering if I would ever find such a love in my life.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Thank you for making this flight special,” Edwin said to me with a warm smile, slipping me a generous tip.
The next day, I visited my mom, and she greeted me with a surprise of her own.
“Kristi, meet my fiancé, Edwin!” she exclaimed.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My heart nearly stopped as that same Edwin from the previous day stepped forward, wearing the same charming smile from the flight.
“Nice to meet you, Kristi,” he said, shaking my hand like we were strangers.
I forced a smile, wondering how to tell my mom that her new fiancé was a complete fraud.
A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney
Over dinner, Edwin shared stories of his “travels,” but every time I pressed for details, he’d brush them off with a laugh.
“The past is the past, ladies,” he’d say, making me even more suspicious. Later, I pulled Mom aside on the balcony, needing to say something.
“Mom, Edwin’s lying to you,” I said. “I saw him yesterday with another woman on my flight. He gave her jewelry, called her his ‘gorgeous Isabella,’ and the works. You’re not the only one he’s seeing.”
Food on a table | Source: Midjourney
My mom’s face hardened.
“Kristi, you’re being ridiculous. Edwin loves me, and maybe you’re just not ready for me to move on after your father.”
“Mom, please,” I said. “He’s scamming you! We know nothing about him.”
But she just turned away, dismissing me.
An upset woman standing on a balcony | Source: Midjourney
As fate would have it, Isabella tracked me down later that week having lost an earring on the flight, and remembered that I had taken care of her while on board.
I met her at one of the airport’s cafés, where she confirmed my fears.
“He asked me for money for an ’emergency,’” she said. “I was about to help him.”
An airport café | Source: Midjourney
We hatched a plan to catch him in the act. The next evening, at an upscale restaurant where Edwin was meeting Isabella, I posed as a waitress.
My heart raced as I approached their table, refilling his wine and “accidentally” spilling some on him.
“Watch it!” he snapped, barely glancing at me.
Spilled wine on a table | Source: Midjourney
But during the commotion, I’d swapped his phone for a decoy, using the opportunity to go through his messages. Sure enough, his phone was filled with dating profiles and messages to other women.
But Edwin noticed his phone was gone, and he also noticed where I was hiding.
“I know you took it!” he barked, rounding in on me.
A woman holding a phone | Source: Midjourney
“I’m not letting you fool my mother,” I said, staring him down.
But Edwin only smirked.
“Your mother’s an adult. She knows what she wants.”
Days later, as Edwin prepared to marry my mom in a small chapel, I watched from outside, defeated. My mother had refused to listen to me.
The interior of a chapel | Source: Midjourney
But then, one by one, the women he’d deceived arrived, led by Isabella. They stormed the chapel in a fury.
“Scammer!” they echoed as they walked in.
Edwin tried to run but was swarmed by angry women hurling shoes and purses. In the end, my mom couldn’t even look at me as she left in tears. But I knew one thing for sure: Edwin would never scam another woman again.
An upset bride | Source: Midjourney
These stories remind us that what happens mid-flight is rarely just about the journey… it’s about unexpected connections, hidden truths, and moments that change lives.
Next time you’re up in the clouds, just imagine the stories the person next to you might be bringing along.
If you’ve enjoyed this compilation, here’s another one for you |
3 Heart-Wrenching Stories About Little Kids Who Were Abandoned
What would drive a parent to abandon their own child? Journey with us through three gripping stories that unveil the raw emotions and unimaginable choices parents made. From the confines of a plane seat to the sterile walls of a hospital, witness the heart-wrenching decisions and the unyielding hope for redemption.
Life often presents us with impossible choices. In these three stories, we explore how certain difficult circumstances make people abandon their kids.
Prepare for an emotional rollercoaster as we go through the lives of three parents who had to part ways with their children.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
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