got this in an email and thought i would share it
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.
' Chicago - to Great Lakes Base
We'll be there for two weeks for
special training, and then we're
being deployed to Iraq '
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 Chicago ,
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 Chicago '
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 seat belt
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 in Chicago 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.''