Sack Lunches: A Human Interest Story
Posted on December 5, 2010. Filed under: Blogroll | Edit This
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.
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.
“We’re being deployed to Afghanistan,” they said.
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 our destination. I 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.
It probably wouldn’t be worth five bucks. I’ll wait until 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 of those soldiers.” She grabbed my arm and squeezed tightly, her eyes wet with tears. “My son was a soldier in Iraq and it’s almost like you are doing this 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 seat numbers. When he got to my row, he stopped, smiled, and held out his hand. ”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 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, handed them seventy-five dollars and said “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.’
Honor Our Soldiers!
As a retired U.S. Army veteran I found this story particularly touching in view of my return from Viet Nam experience.
