OT - The Marine

Post by **Ysabel Kid** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 12:26 am

"Just Stay"

A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. 'Your son is here,' she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened.

Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.

The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night t he young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile. He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients.

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.

Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her.

'Who was that man?' he asked.

The nurse was startled, 'He was your father,' she answered.

'No, he wasn't,' the Marine replied. 'I never saw him before in my life.'

'Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?'

'I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son,
knowing how much he needed me, I stayed.'

The next time someone needs you ... just be there. Stay.

**************
WE ARE NOT HUMAN BEINGS GOING THROUGH A TEMPORARY SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE.

WE ARE SPIRITUAL BEINGS GOING THROUGH A TEMPORARY HUMAN EXPERIENCE.

Rusty · Post by **Rusty** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:06 am

People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Rusty <><

JReed · Post by **JReed** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 11:49 am

That was good.

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 12:28 pm

A wise and timely story.......Thanks!

Jeeps · Post by **Jeeps** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 3:55 pm

Very touching, thank you.

iceman · Post by **iceman** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:54 pm

Great story!!! If everybody tried to live as that Marine did, wouldn't this world be a better place? I try and help as much as Ian to anybody i can, but I don't know if I could have reacted as that Marine in the story. I personally hope I would, but it is hard to know. You don't know wht you can do until you have to.

PPpastordon · Post by **PPpastordon** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 6:24 pm

Ysabel Kid;
I can't say anything better than what has already been said. However, just need to know if there is enough salt in a few tears to screw up my keyboard.

If there is any such thing as being, "Too good," that is it!
Grace and Peace,

AJMD429 · Post by **AJMD429** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:48 pm

I just printed it for my son to read. Sons need to know that being more kind and tender than the average woman might be is a good thing, and part of being a complete man. Likewise, our daughters should know that being a better shot and fighter than the average man might be is also a part of being a complete woman.

Post by **Ysabel Kid** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 11:28 pm

AJMD429 wrote:I just printed it for my son to read. Sons need to know that being more kind and tender than the average woman might be is a good thing, and part of being a complete man. Likewise, our daughters should know that being a better shot and fighter than the average man might be is also a part of being a complete woman.

+1!