English Original
Charles "Chuck" Plumb was a U.S. Navy jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent six years in a Vietnamese prison. He survived the ordeal and now lectures on the lessons he learned.
One day, while Plumb and his wife were dining, a man approached and said, "You're Plumb! You flew jet fighters from the Aircraft Carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down!"
"How did you know that?" asked Plumb. "I packed your parachute," the man replied. Plumb gasped in surprise and gratitude. The man shook his hand and said, "I guess it worked!" Plumb assured him, "It sure did. If your chute hadn't worked, I wouldn't be here today."
Plumb couldn't sleep that night. He wondered how many times he might have seen the sailor on the ship without even saying "Good morning," because he was a fighter pilot and the man was "just" a sailor. He pictured the sailor spending hours at a wooden table in the ship's bowels, carefully weaving the shrouds and folding the silk of each parachute, holding the fate of a stranger in his hands.
Now, Plumb asks his audience, "Who's packing your parachute?" Everyone has someone who provides what they need to get through the day. He points out that when he was shot down, he needed many kinds of parachutes: his physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual parachute. He called on all these supports to reach safety.
Sometimes in life's daily challenges, we miss what's truly important. We may fail to say hello, please, thank you, offer congratulations, give a compliment, or simply do something kind. As you go through your days, recognize the people who pack your parachutes and send them your gratitude.
中文翻译
查尔斯·“查克”·普拉姆是美国海军在越南的喷气式飞机飞行员。在执行了75次战斗任务后，他的飞机被一枚地对空导弹击毁。普拉姆弹射跳伞，落入了敌人手中。他被俘并在越南监狱中度过了六年。他熬过了这场磨难，现在巡回演讲，分享他从这段经历中汲取的教训。
一天，普拉姆和妻子正在餐厅用餐，一名男子走过来对他说：“你是普拉姆！你在越南从小鹰号航空母舰上驾驶喷气式战斗机。你被击落了！”
“你怎么会知道？”普拉姆问。“我为你打包的降落伞，”男子回答。普拉姆惊讶而感激地倒吸一口气。男子握着他的手说：“我猜它起作用了！”普拉姆肯定地说：“确实如此。如果你的降落伞没起作用，我今天就不会在这里了。”
那天晚上，普拉姆无法入睡。他想着自己可能在舰上见过这名水手多少次，却连一句“早上好”都没说过，因为他是战斗机飞行员，而那人“只是”个水手。他想象着这名水手在舰船深处的一张长木桌旁花费数小时，仔细编织伞绳、折叠每顶降落伞的丝绸，手中每一次都掌握着一个陌生人的命运。
如今，普拉姆问他的听众：“谁在为你打包降落伞？”每个人都有那样的人，提供他们度过一天所需的东西。他指出，当他在敌区被击落时，他需要多种降落伞：他的身体降落伞、精神降落伞、情感降落伞和心灵降落伞。在抵达安全地带之前，他求助于所有这些支持。
有时，在生活给予我们的日常挑战中，我们错过了真正重要的东西。我们可能忘了打招呼、说请、道谢，忘了为他人发生的好事表示祝贺，忘了给予赞美，或者只是无缘无故地做点好事。在你度过这一周、这个月、这一年时，请认出那些为你打包降落伞的人，并向他们表达你的感激之情。