As I
came out of the supermarket that sunny day, pushing my cart
of groceries towards my car, I saw an old man with the hood
of his car up and a lady sitting inside the car, with the
door open.
The old man was looking at the engine. I
put my groceries away in my car, and continued to watch the
old gentleman from about twenty-five feet away.
I
saw a young man in his early twenties with a grocery bag in
his arm walking towards the old man. The old gentleman saw
him coming too, and took a few steps towards him.
I
saw the old gentleman point to his open hood and say
something. The young man put his grocery bag into what
looked like a brand new Cadillac Escalade. He then turned
back to the old man. I heard him yell at the old gentleman
saying:
'You shouldn't even be allowed to drive a car
at your age.' And then with a wave of his hand, he got in
his car and peeled rubber out of the parking lot.
I
saw the old gentleman pull out his handkerchief, and mop his
brow as he went back to his car and again looked at the
engine.
He then went to his wife and spoke with her;
he appeared to tell her it would be okay. I had seen enough,
and I approached the old man. He saw me coming and stood
straight, and as I got near him I said, 'Looks like you're
having a problem.'
He smiled sheepishly, and quietly
nodded his head. I looked under the hood myself, and knew
that whatever the problem was, it was beyond me. Looking
around, I saw a gas station up the road, and I told the old
man that I would be right back. I drove to the station and
went inside. I saw three attendants working on cars. I
approached one of them, and related the problem the old man
had with his car. I offered to pay them if they could follow
me back down and help him.
The old man had pushed the
heavy car under the shade of a tree and appeared to be
comforting his wife. When he saw us he straightened up and
thanked me for my help. As the mechanics diagnosed the
problem (overheated engine), I spoke with the old
gentleman.
When I shook hands with him earlier, he
had noticed my Marine Corps ring and had commented about it,
telling me that he had been a Marine, too. I nodded and
asked the usual question, 'What outfit did you serve
with?'
He had mentioned that he served with the first
Marine Division at Tarawa, Saipan, Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal
.......
He had hit all the big ones and retired from
the Corps after the war was over. As we talked we heard the
car engine come on and saw the mechanics lower the hood.
They came over to us as the old man reached for his wallet,
but was stopped by me. I told him I would just put the bill
on my AAA card.
He still reached for the wallet and
handed me a card that I assumed had his name and address on
it and I stuck it in my pocket. We all shook hands all
around again, and I said my goodbye's to his wife.
I
then told the two mechanics that I would follow them back up
to the station. Once at the station, I told them that they
had interrupted their own jobs to come along with me and
help the old man. I said I wanted to pay for the help, but
they refused to charge me
One of them pulled out a
card from his pocket, looking exactly like the card the old
man had given to me. Both of the men told me then that they
were Marine Corps Reserves. Once again we shook hands all
around and as I was leaving, one of them told me I should
look at the card the old man had given to me. I said I would
and drove off.
For some reason I had gone about two
blocks, when I pulled over and took the card out of my
pocket and looked at it for a long, long time. The name of
the old gentleman was on the card in golden leaf and under
his name was written: 'Congressional Medal of
Honor Society.'
I sat there
motionless, looking at the card and reading it over and
over. I looked up from the card and smiled to no one but
myself and marveled that on this day, four Marines had all
come together because one of us needed help.. He was an old
man all right, but it felt good to have stood next to
greatness and courage, and an honor to have been in his
presence. Remember, OLD
men like him gave you
FREEDOM for America . Thanks
to those who served and still serve, and to all of those who
supported them, and who continue to support
them.
America is not at war.
The
U.S. Military is at war. America is at the Mall.
Remember, Freedom isn't Free. Thousands have
paid the price, so that you can enjoy what you have
today.
LET'S DO THIS: JUST 19
WORDS:
GOD OUR FATHER, WALK THROUGH
MY HOUSE AND TAKE AWAY ALL MY WORRIES; AND PLEASE WATCH OVER
AND HEAL MY FAMILY;AND PLEASE PROTECT OUR FREEDOMS, AND
WATCH OVER OUR TROOPS, WHO ARE DEFENDING THOSE FREEDOMS.
AMEN
This prayer is so powerful. Pass this prayer to
12 people, including me.
THIS IS BEST EMAIL OF
THE OF THE DAY!!!!
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