An old man his bucket of shrimp > > > > > > > It happened every Friday evening, almost without fail, when the sun > resembled a giant orange and was starting to dip into the blue ocean. > > > > Old Ed came strolling along the beach to his favorite pier. Clutched in his > bony hand was a bucket of shrimp. Ed walks out to the end of the pier, where > it seems he almost has the world to himself. The glow of the sun is a golden > bronze now. > > > > Everybodys gone, except for a few joggers on the beach. Standing out on the > end of the pier, Ed is alone with his thoughts...and his bucket of shrimp. > > > > Before long, however, he is no longer alone. Up in the sky a thousand white > dots come screeching and squawking, winging their way toward that lanky > frame standing there on the end of the pier. > > > > Before long, dozens of seagulls have enveloped him, their wings fluttering > and flapping wildly. Ed stands there tossing shrimp to the hungry birds. As > he does, if you listen closely, you can hear him say with a smile, Thank > you. Thank you. > > > > In a few short minutes the bucket is empty. But Ed doesnt leave. > > > > He stands there lost in thought, as though transported to another time and > place. > > > > When he finally turns around and begins to walk back toward the beach, a few > of the birds hop along the pier with him until he gets to the stairs, and > then they, too, fly away. And old Ed quietly makes his way down to the end > of the beach and on home. > > > > If you were sitting there on the pier with your fishing line in the water, > Ed might seem like a funny old duck, as my dad used to say. Or, to > onlookers, hes just another old codger, lost in his own weird world, > feeding the seagulls with a bucket full of shrimp. > > > > To the onlooker, rituals can look either very strange or very empty. They > can seem altogether unimportant ... maybe even a lot of nonsense. > > > > Old folks often do strange things, > > at least in the eyes of Boomers and Busters. > > > > Most of them would probably write Old Ed off, down there in Florida. Thats > too bad. Theyd do well to know him better. > > > > His full name: Eddie Rickenbacker. He was a famous hero in World War I, and > then he was in WWII. On one of his flying missions across the Pacific, he > and his seven-member crew went down. Miraculously, all of the men survived, > crawled out of their plane, and climbed into a life raft. > > > > Captain Rickenbacker and his crew floated for days on the rough waters of > the Pacific. They fought the sun. They fought sharks. Most of all, they > fought hunger and thirst. By the eighth day their rations ran out. No food. > No water. They were hundreds of miles from land and no one knew where they > were or even if they were alive. Every day across America millions wondered > and prayed that Eddie Rickenbacker might somehow be found alive. > > > > The men adrift needed a miracle. That afternoon they had a simple devotional > service and prayed for a miracle. They tried to nap. Eddie leaned back and > pulled his military cap over his nose. Time dragged on. All he could hear > was the slap of the waves against the raft... > > > > Suddenly, Eddie felt something land on the top of his cap. > > It was a seagull! > > > > Old Ed would later describe how he sat perfectly still, planning his next > move. With a flash of his hand and a squawk from the gull, he managed to > grab it and wring its neck. He tore the feathers off, and he and his > starving crew made a meal of it - a very slight meal for eight men. Then > they used the intestines for bait. With it, they caught fish, which gave > them food and more bait . . . and the cycle continued. With that simple > survival technique, they were able to endure the rigors of the sea until > they were found and rescued after 24 days at sea. > > > > Eddie Rickenbacker lived many years beyond that ordeal, but he never forgot > the sacrifice of that first life-saving seagull... And he never stopped > saying, Thank you. Thats why almost every Friday night he would walk to > the end of the pier with a bucket full of shrimp and a heart full of > gratitude. > > > > Reference: > > (Max Lucado, In The Eye of the Storm, pp..221, 225-226) > > > > PS: Eddie Rickenbacker was the founder of Eastern Airlines. Before WWI he > was race car driver. In WWI he was a pilot and became America s first ace. > In WWII he was an instructor and military adviser, and he flew missions with > the combat pilots. Eddie Rickenbacker is a true American hero. And now > you know another story about the trials and sacrifices that brave men have > endured for your freedom. > > As you can see, I chose to pass it on. > > It is a great story that many dont know...Youve got to be careful with old > guys, You just never know what they have done during their lifetime. > > > > > > Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to > God. >
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 22:00:28 +0000
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