It only takes one, could it be you
 

This may have circulated before, but it is always worth another read.

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 so 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 yours, 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.'

Let us pray....

'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect
us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us
in our time of need. Amen.'
Of all the gifts you could give a Marine, Soldier, Sailor, Airman, & others deployed in harm's way, prayer is the very best
one.

GOD BLESS YOU FOR PASSING IT ON!

Cool story, thanks for posting

+1

someone did this for some buddies & me..
paid dinner & gave us 30 dollar bar tab...
never saw the person..

Rika

I thought this was a very considerate thing to do

When I drove a bunch of Nationl Guard soldiers down to training, we stopped at a fast food place to eat. There were probably 25 total. As they were starting to order, a stranger came up and asked where they were going, and they told him. He then said that everyone's order would be on him. Middle of nowhere, complete stranger, nice gesture.

Early in 2002, my wife and I took a little break (leave) and were working our way to CA when we stopped for the night in Monterey. The next morning at breakfast an older couple apparently overheard a conversation we were having with our waitress about my sweatshirt. It had a C-17 on it and she wanted it. Told her I would send her one when I got back to my base (and I did). Anyway, when it came time for the check, the waitress told us that the older couple paid for us on the way out and told her to say thanks to us. Made me tear up. That wasn't the first time nor the last that that has happened. It means alot, it really does. Those guys will never forget that.

I have not had the chance but if it presents itself I will do what I can in the moment to show my appreciation.

I did not serve in the military but I sure as he!! have much respect and admiration for those that have/are. They are true heroes, IMO.

Probably an urban legend. When was the last time an airline had "sack lunches" for $5? Hell you can't get a value meal at McDonalds for much less than that.

I've always wanted to do something like this, but I never see unformed soldiers in an airport in a group. I was always hoping I'd find them all waiting in line at the Starbucks or something and I could just hand the cashier my credit card and tell him to cover everyone in uniform. The closest I came was one night after a Rush concert, we went to Pat's (Philly) for cheesesteaks. A few solderis drove up and we insisted they get in front of us in line. If you've been to Pat's before, it's a little like the Soup Nazi when ordering, so we were trying to figure out how we could tell the lady to let us pay for the soldiers' cheesesteaks. When they pulled their wallets out, we jumped in front of them and said we had it. But the lady there said "I wasn't gonna charge them anyway." I guess that's how they compete with the "Order in English only" sign at Geno's across the street.

Your post stands out like a sore thumb, in this thread.

Best,
Tom

Why? Just stating an opinion. Go back and read the story. It just doesn't ring true. Not to mention military personnel in a travel status get reimbursed more than $5 for a lunch meal.

my friends mom had me over for thanksgiving. 3 random soldiers joined us. she had signed up for some program to feed kids that were far from home. they were pretty cool, and very respectful.

great story.

To add further, the post is more of a "look at me, aren't I a great guy" sort of thing.

It is a great story, but a true capitalist would have realized that he could have made $25 and got a free meal, and fed all the soldiers on the plane.


J/K!!!!!:rolleyes:

It's a great story, but the first thing that I thought was exactly what Rot911 said. I just didn't think it needed saying.

I'm currently reading a book called "Suddenly We didn't Want to Die" which is the Memoirs of a WWI Marine

This really struck a chord for me for some reason. This seems like a slightly fitting place to post it.

Don't be a TURD.

GOD BLESS the MEN that put themselves in harms way.

One of my sons is talking of joining up. (I've raised 4 sons, this son is VERY BRIGHT. and he's 16 going om 19 and want's to join.)

I have a nephew that is in the navy. His job is to rescue pilots and other men who have found themselves not where they need to be.

18 and 19 year old boys can be more of a man than I.

"This may have circulated before, but it is always worth another read"

The guy never meant for it to be his words. It's apparent that it is a story, but it's possible as some have already posted. The act of kindness and appreciation....it's a reminder. No need to be negative about it "Rot."

Acts of kindness are good for the soul.

fixed it!

(to the original post, good story, true or not)

You never know when the chance to make a difference for someone else will come.
Keep your eyes open , life is in front of every step we take.....

The story has been around since 08.

If you have gone back and read the story you might have noticed "Petawawa".......that's a military base in Canada. Canadian airlines charge $5 for a "bag lunch" or "snak" and Canadian soldiers don't get reimbursed for their out of pocket expenses.

This is a updated version...the line about a "blank cheque" used to read "to their country" when I first saw it.

How am I being a turd? I don't think it is true and just pointed it out. There are plenty of people out there doing great things for the troops for us to read about, no need to have these fake "feel good" stories.

If this story is true or false you're still being a "downer" on it. Yes, I've seen random acts of kindness bestowed on those who serve.

I think, in some form, the story is true.

If you see a person in Uniform, step up to them and thank them for their service. It means a lot.

I work at a National Guard Base. When I am at lunch with some of our folks in Uniform, I would say not a month goes by that some stranger does not stop by to shake their hands, thank them for theior service, offer to buy their meal etc. It happens frequently.

Not as easy to do something nice for the older generation. I just brought in a small truck for a state inspection. Elderly gentleman driving the truck, and Silver Star license plates on it. I went up and told the service writer NOT to charge the customer, I would pay for the inspection. When I finished I walked up and handed the gentleman the keys. He reached for his wallet and I told him to have a nice day, it was on me, his money was no good today. He kinda wanted to argue with me, so I held out my hand, thanked him for his service and told him to have a nice day. I know I didn't offend him, but I watched his eyes soften as he just smiled and walked out. I don't think the old vets expect to get too much respect from a greasy hippy.

well this former 'Hippy' thanks you Rick..
and who knows..
in his younger days..
he was one too..
so true or not..
make a difference..
start your own story..

Rika

So have I. Feel free to email the story to everyone you know.

I, too, suspect this is a fictional story. Checked Snope.com, nothing definitive but some suspicious factoids - pilot is unlikely to leave the cockpit during a post 9/11 flight, Petatawawa is a Canadian military base, most airlines don't take cash any more, etc.

The sentiment is great, but it is sort of like an Aesop's Fable story. If you have respect for the truth, you do have to be aware of the difference between an inspirational but invented fable and an actual factual account.

http://www.catalogs.com/info/bestof/...bie_downer.jpg

To explain my view a little more -

I get irritated when politicians make up fake stories to win votes. I don't permit my children to lie to me. I don't feed false stories to my friends, and my friends wouldn't appreciate it if I did. Passing around made-up stories is something I associate with tittering kids in the playground. So I always find it puzzling that, in this forum of presumed adults, some people post fabrications masquerading as true stories, and get all indignant when they're called on it.

I suppose that tall tales and fables have always been around, from Aesop to Mark Twain, but I think that they were always acknowledged to be fictional. Today I see the line between truth and falsehood getting too blurry, and this lack of accountability, and disrespect for the truth bothers me.

I also don't like the implication that fabrications are "okay" if they reflect popular sentiments, but not okay if they reflect unpopular views. That sounds like propaganda to me.

Fictional or not, the purpose of the story is to inspire good people to do good things for others.
Some people go about their daily routine looking for opportunities to make someone else feel better about themselves and their lives even if it's as simple as sharing a smile.
Some people go about their daily routine looking for a way to make someone else feel bad in an attempt to make them feel better about themselves.
This latter someone isn't you, so don't be offended, just smile. ;)

Might be, but there have been multiple posts in this thread that cite the same sentiment, given and received, first person.

Me? Happened twice on the receiving end, many times in the giving end.

If you have ever had young men and women in your command, sent them into odd places, you get a sense of them, what they want.

A meal, a few bucks, a hand shake? A little something, you know, for the effort?

Yes.

They know where they are going, where they have been.

The only prayer i ever learned in the infantry was a simple one.

"Yea though i walk through the shadow of the valley of death, i shall fear no evil. For i am the baddest motherfker in the valley."

It is far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help.

I read this after I posted it. It didn't make sense on this board, is not relevant, and I tried to delete it unsuccessfully. There is really no way for others to discover one's good qualities on an internet board.

Best,
Tom

Who were you even talking to?

That's part of the point. It was not directed at anyone in particular and was very ambiguous. It played out a lot better in my head than on the screen, and has now faded from in my head as well.

Oh well!
Tom

I did this at the Burger king at the intersection of RT100, and I-44 outside of Washington Missouri a few years ago. I think they were all National Guardsmen. There were about 10 of them, and they tried to argue, but I won out. They got to keep that meal voucher for something else that day. With my meal included, it was probably one of the best $100 bills I've ever spent.

You know the Vets with the little plastic poppies willing to take donations? If you stuff a $20 in the donation can, you get one hell of a handshake, and a huge Thank You with a tear in his eye. That one damned near made ME cry.

i was in a resturant near NAS Lemoore having lunch when 3 navy "sailors"? (it's an air base i don't know what they were)...stopped in to eat.
As i left, i told the waitress to add their lunches to my bill.
I never let them know who paid for their lunch, it's just a very small thanks for their job keeping me safe.