05/14/2024
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 a 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 'citizens of United States '
for an amount of 'up to and including my life.'
That is Honour, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.'
