Thank You for Your Service
A group of uniformed servicemen was exiting
a restaurant as I entered with a group of
teacher friends wearing our school shirts.
I thanked them for serving our country, and
as they walked away, I heard one say, “They’re
the ones who work in a war zone full of runny
noses, stacks of papers, and 1,000 questions a
day. I prefer my job!” Coming from a military
family, I was both humbled and amused by
our mutual admiration.
—Stephanie A. Woodard Missouri City, TexasA Grateful Patient
By Judy Starkweather
hendersonville, north carolinaI
took a job as a receptionist for a veterinar-
ian almost five decades ago. As an avid
animal lover, I accepted the position
on the condition that I wouldn’t
have to assist with any wounded
animals. I couldn’t bear to see
any creature in pain.
At the end of my first week,
we were closing the office
for the day when a young
man ran up to us hold-
ing a severely injured
Doberman pinscher
puppy in his arms and
begging us to save his life.
The four-month-old pup
had been hit by a car.My Riveting Lecture
While putting myself
through college, I worked
several summers as the
rifle-range instructor at a
Boy Scout camp. Since
these were true rifles,
seriousness and safety
were the rule. On the first
day of camp, after giving
a stern-faced 20-minute
lecture on correct shoot-
ing procedure, I turned to
my campers with a smug
sense of a job well done
and asked whether there
were any questions. At
the ready to impart more
knowledge, I called on
the Scout in back with the
raised hand. His question?
“Are those the same shoes
you wore last year?”
—Wayne Sanders II
akron, ohio20 july/august 2019 Illustrations by Hallie Bateman
Reader’s Digest
YOUR
TRUE
STORIES
in 100 Words*