[GCFL-discuss] Greater Love hath no man

[gcfl-discuss at gcfl.net]

Great story Frank, could be true...Things like do happen.

Hows the new baby doing.

Dave



  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: gcfl-discuss at gcfl.net 
  To: Shirley Heit 
  Cc: Discussion of the Good, Clean Funnies List 
  Sent: Friday, May 21, 2004 6:09 PM
  Subject: [GCFL-discuss] Greater Love hath no man


  Maybe this is what we must do to gain salvation.  

  Frank


  No Greater Love 
  I heard this story when I was in Vietnam, and it was told to me as fact. 
  I 
  have no way of knowing for sure that it is true, but I do know that 
  stranger things have happened in war. 
  Whatever their planned target, the mortar rounds landed in an orphanage 
  run by a missionary group in the small Vietnamese village. The 
  missionaries 
  and one or two children were killed outright, and several more children 
  were wounded, including one young girl, about eight years old. 
  People from the village requested medical help from a neighboring town 
  that 
  had radio contact with the American forces. Finally, an American Navy 
  doctor and nurse arrived in a jeep with only their medical kits. They 
  established that the girl was the most critically injured. Without quick 
  action, she would die of shock and loss of blood. 
  A transfusion was imperative, and a donor with a matching blood type was 
  required. A quick test showed that neither American had the correct 
  type, 
  but several of the uninjured orphans did. 
  The doctor spoke some pidgin Vietnamese, and the nurse a smattering of 
  high-school French. Using that combination, together with much impromptu 
  sign language, they tried to explain to their young, frightened audience 
  that unless they could replace some of the girl's lost blood, she would 
  certainly die. Then they asked if anyone would be willing to give blood 
  to 
  help. Their request was met with wide-eyed silence. After several long 
  moments, a small hand slowly and waveringly went up, dropped back down, 
  and then went up again. 
  "Oh, thank you," the nurse said in French. 
  "What is your name?" 
  "Heng," came the reply. 
  Heng was quickly laid on a pallet, his arm swabbed with alcohol, and a 
  needle inserted in his vein. Through this ordeal Heng lay stiff and 
  silent. 
  After a moment, he let out a shuddering sob, quickly covering his face 
  with 
  his free hand. 
  "Is it hurting, Heng?" the doctor asked. Heng shook his head, but after 
  a 
  few moments another sob escaped, and once more he tried to cover up his 
  crying. Again the doctor asked him if the needle hurt, and again Heng 
  shook 
  his head. 
  But now his occasional sobs gave way to a steady, silent crying, his 
  eyes 
  screwed tightly shut, his fist in his mouth to stifle his sobs. The 
  medical 
  team was concerned. Something was obviously very wrong. At this point, a 
  Vietnamese nurse arrived to help. Seeing the little one's distress, she 
  spoke to him rapidly in Vietnamese, listened to his reply and answered 
  him 
  in a soothing voice. 
  After a moment, the patient stopped crying and looked questioningly at 
  the 
  Vietnamese nurse. When she nodded, a look of great relief spread over 
  his 
  face. 
  Glancing up, the nurse said quietly to the Americans, "He thought he was 
  dying. He misunderstood you. He thought you had asked him to give all 
  his 
  blood so the little girl could live." 
  "But why would he be willing to do that?" asked the Navy nurse. 
  The Vietnamese nurse repeated the question to the little boy, who 
  answered 
  simply, "She's my friend." 
  Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for a 
  friend. 
  Col. John W. Mansur 
  Condensed from "Missileer" 


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