The Sack
Lunches
I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight.. 'I'm glad I
have a good
book to read, Perhaps I will get a short nap,' I thought.
Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and
filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me, I decided
to
start a conversation. 'Where are you headed?' I asked the
soldier seated nearest to me.
'Petawawa. We'll be there for
two weeks for special training,
and then we're being deployed to
Afghanistan
After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that
sack lunches were available for five dollars. It would be
several
hours before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch
would
help pass the time..
As I reached for my wallet, I overheard soldier ask his buddy if
he planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money
for
just a sack lunch... Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll
wait
till we get to base '
His friend agreed.
I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch.
I walked to the back of the plane and handed the
flight attendant a
fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch
to all those soldiers.' She grabbed
my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she
thanked
me. 'My son was a soldier in Iraq
; it's almost like you are doing it for him.'
Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the
soldiers were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which
do you
like best - beef or chicken?'
'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked.
She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute
later with a dinner plate from first class. This is your
thanks.'
After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane,
heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you
did. I
want to be part of it. Here, take this...' He handed me
twenty-five
dollars..
Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain
coming
down the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I
hoped he
was not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the
numbers
only on my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped,
smiled,
held out his hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.'
Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the Captain's
hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was a soldier and I was a
military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act
of kindness
I never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was heard from
all
of the passengers.
Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my
legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached
out
his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five
dollars
in my palm.
When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane.
Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me,
put
something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without
saying a word.
Another twenty-five dollars!
Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for
their
trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them
seventy-five
dollars. 'It will take you some time to reach the base. It will
be
about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'
Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of
their fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I
whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were
giving their all for our country. I could only give them a
couple of meals.
It seemed so little...
A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a
blank
check made payable to 'The United
States of America ' for an amount of
'up to and including my life.'
That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country
who no longer understand it.'
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