Those four letters can feel like a verdict, but they’re really a filter, a way the system slows certain travelers down for a closer look. It’s intrusive, yes, and often inconvenient, but it is not a secret accusation stamped on your character. You are moving through a process, not standing trial. The agents are following a script, not writing your story.
When you understand what’s happening and why, the experience shifts. You can show up earlier, pack with intention, and answer calmly, knowing that this moment was never meant to define you. The checks end, the questions fade, and soon you’re walking back toward your gate, boarding pass in hand, reminded that even the most unsettling pauses in our journeys are still just that: pauses, not endings.
