Pay it Forward

Have you ever wanted something to go so well, so perfectly, only to find that your plans have been frustrated, your high ideals have been dashed, and you’ve come to a place where you’re not even sure you’ll be able to extricate yourself from the mess you’ve made?

This was the situation that Dana James found himself in during his honeymoon journey twenty years ago. Dana and Patricia James were young, they were in love, and they had high expectations of what life had to offer them. Patricia was a student in law school. Dana worked for Northwest Airlines. They had very little money, but Dana was determined that he and Patricia would enjoy an unforgettable honeymoon.

Because he worked for an airlines, Dana was able to get very cheap first-class airline tickets and generous discounts at hotels. Although his personal finances were extremely restricted, he planned a five-star honeymoon trip to the far East for himself and Patricia. This would be a trip of a lifetime, and they would be able to travel on a shoestring! He and Patricia even figured they could conserve their money by skipping a few meals here and there and rely on enjoying the dining on-board the airplane. With very little money in their pockets, they set out with high expectations.

On their outbound flight, Dana and Patricia settled comfortably into their first-class seats for the lengthy journey. They noticed a diminutive Japanese gentleman seated near them. During the course of the flight, the gentleman came to their seats and struck up a conversation with them. He asked where they were going and they told him their itinerary. “Oh,” he said, “you are not traveling to Japan?” “We would like to very much,” Patricia replied. “My mother is in fact Japanese and my father is African-American. But we do not have enough money to travel to Japan.” “That is too bad,” the man said. He walked back to his seat and then returned with a binder filled with business cards. Dana reports that there were over two dozen business cards for different businesses naming Mr. George Ishiyama as CEO or Founder. The businesses were diverse: salt mining, construction, paper mills, etc. Dana and Patricia did not know whether to be impressed or concerned.

Mr. Ishiyama selected a card and wrote his phone number on the back. “If you are ever in Japan,” he said, “call me.” It was an offer of hospitality. But why? Why would a man strike up a conversation with two people he had never met and offer to show them hospitality they had not requested? Dana and Patricia did not know what to think. Looking back, Patricia says that she figured it was an easy offer to make, since the couple was not likely to take him up on it. The gesture was a grand one, but really, these were just empty words.

Dana and Patricia continued on their journey. Although they had very little money, they managed to enjoy themselves for several weeks in some memorable locations. Then, they found themselves with a layover in Tokyo. And their clever plan to see the world on a shoestring failed. Northwest Airlines was changing over to a new computer system. And on the day that change occurred, as Dana and Patricia were awaiting their next flight, their carefully planned itinerary was deleted from the system. They had no outbound flight. They were told that the problem could be remedied, but that they would have to wait three days. Between them, they had $130 U.S. dollars. A bowl of noodles in the airport cost $30. There was no way they could afford shelter and food for three days, and they weren’t certain that the airport would allow them to live in the terminal over the weekend.

When the truth of their situation hit home, Patricia, weary from traveling and fearful of their fate in this foreign country, sat amongst the luggage, put her head down and cried. Dana, the groom, kicked into survival mode and tried to find some way to salvage this honeymoon he thought he had so carefully planned. He paced the airport terminal, and as he did so, he put his hand in his pocket. There he found the card that Mr. Ishiyama had given him.

“Surely he didn’t mean anything to come of this,” he thought. “But I’m just that desperate.” He placed a call to the number he had been given. When a woman answered in Japanese at the other end of the line, Dana gave her his name. “Oh, yes, Mr. James,” she said. “Mr. Ishiyama has been expecting your call. I’ll put you through.” Dana was shocked. But when Mr. Ishiyama came on the line, Dana explained his situation.

“Do you have enough money for a taxi into town?” Mr. Ishiyama asked. Dana honestly had no idea how much that would cost, but he said he did. Mr. Ishiyama gave Dana the name of a hotel and asked him to meet him there. In truth, Dana and Patricia did not even have enough money for the taxi, but they were able to find a shuttle bus that delivered them to the door of the hotel. As they stepped off the bus, two employees of the hotel came forward to escort them and their luggage to a room. Dana gave them his credit card, but they waved it away. “Mr. Ishiyama will be here shortly,” they said. “Please, freshen up.”

What a bizarre situation! Here are two young people, stranded in Tokyo. It is the mid-eighties. There are no cell phones, no Internet - none of their friends or family know where they are. They barely have enough money left to buy one meal in this expensive town. And here they are “freshening up” in a five-star hotel as the guests of a man they don’t know and barely even met! When they got the call that Mr. Ishiyama was downstairs, they left their room. Both Dana and Patricia admit that they were frankly terrified. Raised in urban Chicago, Dana feared the worst. What had he gotten himself and his bride into? What did this man want from them? Nobody would give a stranger such elaborate accommodations. Nobody would be so gracious to two people he met on a plane! Surely, there must be an ulterior motive. Perhaps a very unpleasant one. In the elevator, Dana actually told Patricia that if things went south, he would attack Mr. Ishiyama. In that event, Patricia was to run, screaming loudly, and not look back.

They met Mr. Ishiyama in the restaurant. They were highly nervous, but they made pleasantries. Then Mr. Ishiyama told them his story. When I was a child, he said, my family lived in Los Angeles. I was 20 years old when my family, and all our neighbors, were sent to an internment camp in Wyoming after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. We were taken from our homes, our businesses, our comforts, and we were forced to put our lives on hold. It was a terrible time. The people in the town near our camp were not kind to us. Except one family. There was a young African-American couple who lived near the camp. He was a postal carrier. They treated us as neighbors and allowed our children to play with their children. They treated us as human.”

“I have never forgotten their kindness. When I saw you two on the plane, I was reminded of this couple. I cannot repay them for what they did for me and my family. But I can share this story with you. Mr. Ishiyama reached in his pocket and then took Dana’s hand. He put into his hand a huge was of Japanese yen. “Enjoy your honeymoon,” he said.

Patricia started to cry. Here they were, in a scary and uncertain position, and this man, who they did not even know, was giving them a solution to their problems. They had been desperate, but they had also been suspicious and fearful. But here was only love and kindness and generosity for a fellow traveler in need.

[Heard on "The Story" from American Public Media: http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_873_Unexpected_Honeymoon.mp3/view]

The King's Loaves

A Jewish folktale entitled "The King's Loaves" tells about two beggars who went daily to the palace to beg at the king's gate for bread.

Every day the king gave each of them a loaf of bread. One of the beggars always thanked the king for his generosity, but the other thanked God for giving the king sufficient wealth to give charitably.

The second beggar's words always hurt the king. So the king decided to teach him a lesson. The king ordered his baker to bake two identical loaves, but one concealed precious jewels. Then he instructed the baker to give the loaf with the hidden jewels to the beggar who always thanked the king for his charity.

The next day the baker went to the king's gate and handed the two loaves to the beggars. He took great care not to confuse the two, for he feared the king's wrath. When the beggar with the special loaf felt how heavy and hard it was, he concluded that it was poorly made and asked the other beggar to exchange loaves with him.

The second beggar, always eager to help a friend, agreed. Then they went their separate ways. When the second man bit into the loaf, he discovered that it was filled with jewels. He thanked God for his good fortune, grateful that he would no longer have to beg for his bread.

The next morning the king was surprised to find only the first beggar at the palace gate. He had the baker brought before him and asked him, "Did you mix up the two loaves I had you bake?"

"No, your majesty," answered the baker. "I did exactly as you asked." Then the king turned to the beggar and asked, "What did you do with the loaf you received yesterday?" The man replied, "It was hard and poorly baked, so I gave it to my friend in exchange for his."

Then the king understood that all his riches had indeed come from God, and that only the Holy One can make a poor man rich or a rich man poor.

God is the giver of all bread and all possessions.

Bread is not merely food; it is also a metaphor for all that God has given us. In the fourth petition of the Lord's Prayer, we ask that God "give us this day our daily bread." In this petition, we are not simply asking God for a loaf of bread, but we are acknowledging that it is indeed God who gives us all that we need to survive: breathe, life, food, shelter, all our possessions, health, our family and friends. Everything.

We are bread for one another when we welcome a stranger and when we walk with someone through an illness. We are bread for one another when we love those who are most difficult to love and when we defend the defenseless. We are bread for one another when we teach and when we forgive. And finally, we are bread for one another when we share the bread we have been given.

["The King's Loaves," an Afghanistani folktale from The Classic Tales: 4000 Years of Jewish Lore, Ellen Frankel, ed., New Jersey: Jason Aronson, Inc., 1989. Quoted in the sermon "We are Bread When" by Rev. Beth Warpmaeker, 2000.]

A Good Gift

Bidding had been a bit disappointing at the Harvest Festival Live Auction the year after terrorists removed the World Trade Center from the New York City skyline forever. The economy was uncertain, unemployment was on the rise, and people were cautious with their spending, even if the money was going for missions. But the atmosphere in the church Fellowship Hall was lively and joyful, even though many “bargains” were handed over by the auctioneer.

But then two giggling teenagers paraded around the room with a beautiful hand-stitched wedding ring quilt. Pat Armstrong nudged her husband. “That’s the one,” she said. “Don’t you think it’ll look perfect in our guest room?” Bob, who had learned long ago that it was easier to agree with his wife’s decorating fancies than fight them, wisely nodded. “Get your number up!” Bob calmly obliged, and the bidding began. The numbers rose: $150...$250...$550...$750. A similar quilt had sold 15 minutes ago for $500. People began to pay attention. Nothing in the auction so far had created this much of a stir. “Keep going,” Pat said. “The church needs the money for missions and I need that quilt!” Bob nodded. $850.

Soon, there was only one other bidder, a small man seated quietly in the back corner of the room. Pat couldn’t see who it was. But it didn’t matter. She wanted that quilt! $1150...$1350...$1500 going once...going twice...SOLD! The crowd cheered, the auctioneer wiped his brow, Pat bounced in her seat. And if Bob was slightly startled by the amount of money he had just agreed to pay, his emotions were confined to one, long sigh.

The auction continued. A week-long catamaran voyage in the Caribbean drew $3,000. But nothing seemed as exciting as the duel for this wedding ring quilt.

After the auction, Sunday school class members congratulated Bob and Pat on their win. Pat asked, “Who was it we were bidding against? I couldn’t see them?” “It was Don Frogge,” someone said. Bob and Pat looked at each other. “Don Frogge?” Pat said. “Didn’t his wife stitch this quilt?” “She did. It was the last one she made before she died. She intended it for the Harvest Festival auction, and Don thought it was right to donate it. But it was her last quilt. He realized he wanted to buy it back and keep it.”

Don and Amy had been married for 52 years. Bob and Pat didn’t even have to discuss their intentions as they grabbed the quilt and headed out to the parking lot to catch Don. “Don!” Bob called. “Wait up!” They reached Don at his car and handed him the quilt. “We bought this for you,” Pat said. “We want you to have it.” Don was speechless, and full of emotion. “I intended to buy this quilt back. I know Amy wanted the church to have the money. But I wanted to have her quilt. I could tell you meant to have it, too, Pat. So I let it go. I tried to tell myself that she would have wanted me to do that, but...” He looked up. “Thank you.”

“We’ll see you Sunday,” said Bob and Pat. And they walked off to their car, very satisfied with their $1500 purchase. Bob put the quilt lovingly on the seat of his car, closed the door, and walked back into the church. At the Auction Check-Out table, Bob pulled out his checkbook and wrote a check for $1500. He knew he was blessed to have received the quilt from his friends. And he thought it only fitting that the church's missions budget should be twice blessed by this gift.