Nine days ago I flew from Nashville back home to Denver on Southwest Airlines. One of the flight attendants was refreshingly unusual. He was the type that made us, his captive audience, laugh using humor at every chance he could get, including yelling a noise into the loud speaker after we'd landed. It sounded like screeching brakes. Scared some I'm sure, but most of us laughed.
But during the flight, he also gave us something to think about. It's been on my mind since. He announced, "I would love to give a free adult beverage to the first peron who can tell me ONE of the five names of the American soldiers who have been awarded the Medal of Honor during Afghanistan or Iraq. Go ahead and ring your call button."
Silence. A few nervous twitters. But nothing.
He repeated the question a couple of times. Still silence.
Then he said, "Okay, let's change the question. Ring your call button if you know the name of an American Idol winner."
Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding.
The aisles lit up.
Sad, isn't it?
So I looked them up. I read about what they did. I cried as I realized these five young men had each died for their fellow soldiers and for me. And you.
If you go to http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/asaoc.html
you can read about the heroism of these five brave men:
Michael P. Murphy
Jason L. Dunham
Ross McGinnis
Michael Monsoor
Paul Smith
5 comments:
Thanks, Robbie, for this. I loved it for the fact it made me feel weepy, and I'm not a weepy person. These men sacrificed for us all.
What an extraordinary man that flight attendant is. Great story. I couldn't name any of those medal winners either, nor could I name any American Idol winners (I don't watch it).
Wow, what a profound comment that guy had. I hope he got more people to think.
Thanks for sharing.
Stunningly poignant.
Thank you ladies for your comments. It made am impact on me, that's for sure. We take the young people who fight for us for granted. At least I know I do.
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