The Sack Lunches ~Unknown Author

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, An 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 ' 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.'
May God Give You The Strength And Courage To Pass This Along To Everyone On Your Email Buddy List....

Remembring the fallen and the heroes

Never forget those who paid all that they had for YOU ! Please take just a moment and look at these sites. Remember my fellow americans, Remember----
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf
http://www.cmohs.org/
http://www.dav.org/

Today is my birthday

Today I celebrate my birthday and my freedom.
It has been 5yrs since I was medically retired from the U.S. Navy. I cannot believe how quickly time flies!!! I truly miss the fun, excitement, hard work, comraderie, and honor of serving in the military. One thing I'm thankful for is the respect and thanks given to me in return...a full retirement. Being able to continue utilizing the services on base, staying connected in my friendships and for me to continue serving in different capacities as a retiree. Even tho I can no longer support the fight on the front, I can salute those that do, have and will.
The rough waters and tribulating storms have been difficult to navigate these past years. However, I am a Seabee and Seabees CAN DO !!! I will press forward despite my disabilities.
"Can Do" has been my motto through the many years of camouflage and civis. lol
If you take just a moment to realize that you really do have it good; you will see a whole new light in things.
I thank my two wonderful, supportive and loving children, without them I would not be here. That is a fact and a Godsend. I am truly thankful that I have been blessed to care for them as they do for me.
I am thankful that I live in the world's greatest country. Created by the means of God himself. It was no coincidence that certain men with certain special gifts and abilities were put in the right place at the exact time that God wanted them for the purpose of establishing this great nation.
I am thankful to all of the men & women that have died in the building, strengthening, and protecting of our people, values, freedoms and liberties as well as everything else that we as Americans stand for ! Thank you for allowing another birthday for me to take place in a free land !