I believe I’ve decided that the person who invented the roller suitcase should be knighted. Or maybe even made a saint.

In the three airports where I was over the holidays, I don’t believe I saw anyone who wasn’t wheeling their suitcase. You know the style-the wheels on one end of the suitcase, and the pull-out, long handle on the other end.

Remember when a suitcase had to be carried? When the handle was on the side? And remember when suitcases were generally either basic black or perhaps a nice navy? Not so any more. Not only are suitcases made differently now, they come in just about every color of the rainbow plus prints and polka dots. I probably saw most of those colors on my recent little trip.

Just as the suitcases come in a variety of colors, the people wheeling them are all ages and sizes-big and little, young and old, veteran travelers, I’m sure, and newbies, too. And all of them can really make some time wheeling their valises down the concourses between flights.

I expect the invasion of the roller suitcases is especially noticeable because almost everyone, I observed, carries on their luggage these days, thanks to the extra fees for checking bags imposed by the airlines. It used to be that everyone checked their bags, their traditional suitcases, so of course you didn’t see any of them being carried. The only things I saw being carried were duffels and backpacks.

Something else I realized on this little jaunt is that my world has become pretty small much of the time. It’s easy, what with work responsibilities, projects at home, fitting in time with friends.

But when you’re in an airport or two and observe the hordes of bustling people, it’s pretty apparent that the world really isn’t too small after all. Except that the old phrase “it’s a small world” was true for me once again when a friendly, chatty man became my seat mate on my short flight.

Soon we realized that his family has a much-loved house on a lake in Michigan where I have spent several summers and which holds many warm memories for me. So we spent the rest of the flight sharing experiences and memories, complete with photos of the lake and his house that he keeps on his phone and was eager to share with me. There was even a close-up video taken from the bow of their sailboat where I could see and almost feel the movement of the water and boat.

It was a wonderful way to pass the time.