On the sea of humanity

In the waning afternoon on a ship in the South China Sea something is about to change the course of despair. The sea, even in non tumultuous times, can be an unforgiving and dangerous place to find your-self lost and adrift upon.   Imagine if you had to choose one of two fates: The first fate is to be murdered by an unrelenting government bent on bringing about your demise because you helped the US Government attempt to throw off the communist yoke, or, fleeing this systematic killing machine with your family by taking your chances on this unforgiving sea.  Hollywood has documented these struggles and atrocities after our departure in Vietnam,  a movie titled “the Killing Fields”. It is 1979 and four years since the terrible war ended for us but still rages for those whom we left behind to face the consequences of the dream they had. The thing we take for granted, freedom!”

The young enlisted man stands watch on the bridge of the USS Hepburn as he has come to expect in the routine that his military life affords. As he scanned the never ending horizon through his binoculars he spots a craft adrift off the port side and immediately informs the commanding officer.  This type of wooden craft wouldn’t show up on any of the high tech radar systems that bristle on one of the most modern warships of that time. The Commanding officer takes the binoculars and observes the craft, turns to the officer of the deck and orders him to slow their speed and plot an intercept course to investigate the foundering vessel.

The Captain handed the glasses back to the sailor and directs him to assemble a boarding party and adds that he will be responsible for their care once safely aboard the ship. The Captain had seen this many times in the open sea and educates the young man that he is witnessing desperate individuals and families fleeing Vietnam (commonly referred to as “boat people”). The Captain tells him that he is to search the vessel for any weapons or dangerous contraband before bringing them aboard. Once aboard they will sink the vessel to avoid any hazard to navigation the emptied and aimless craft can pose. It will take them approximately 6 days sailing time to the nearest refugee center located in Hong Kong. The Captain had the officer of the deck relay this course change to the crew on the ship-wide announcement system.

With a sidearm strapped on his hip the boarding party maneuvered alongside the craft and the true nature of the situation became evident. The skiff held over 125 souls in a craft meant to carry 30.  As they got closer he could see a mixture of emotions in all their faces. Fear, apprehension and hope but it was the last emotion that prevailed as they understood it was an American ship coming to rescue them. 

The overall condition of the members of this craft was dire since they had run out of food two days prior and their water supplies were almost depleted. Unbeknownst at the time to the sailor tasked with their rescue was the skiff was boarded a week earlier by another warship under the Thai flag and they were subsequently robbed and set back adrift to their fates which was common in those days. They lived another day.

The Petty officer radioed back to the ship to send an addition two boats because they skiff was too packed with human cargo he could not add his own presence until they extricated many of the souls off first. He would perform a search of those individuals first until such time it was safe to do a more methodical search of the craft itself. It was of no surprise that none of the people spoke any English but they seemed to understand basic commands and the process concluded in less than an hour. 

During the 6 days transit time to Hong Kong, the young sailor ensured that they had cover over their heads as they were quarantined above decks to avoid the possibility of transmitting any disease and vermin to the ships’ crew. The tropical weather helped along these lines. He knew that they were lice infested as he watched the mothers sit cross legged with children in their laps expertly running their fingers over their scalps until they found a lice nit, quickly plucked it, and then ate it. The primitive nature of these people was foreign to the young man entrusted with their care. There was a comfort in watching how close knit they were. They were bathed, fed, clothed and medically examined during this transit period. 

During this entire trip the young petty officer never thought anything other than it was just his job, his duty to follow the direct order that his commanding officer gave. The military trains to this end so that continuity of command is never questioned and details are never missed. You can count on the man or woman to think similarly and know that they will respond accordingly and have each other’s back.

Six months later the young petty officer is awarded the Navy Humanitarian Service Medal for his diligent duties during that period. It is uncommon for any service member to receive any medals during peacetime and he took pride in what that represented though to him it was just another day at sea. Though he was in their company extensively, he never took the time to really think about the whole experience through their eyes and their emotions. This was due to the combination of his training and the fact he never really communicated with them on a more personal level. 

Four years goes by and the young sailor has a new wife and expecting his first child and decides to hang up the military life for that of a civilian. During the next 2 years he has made the successful transition to a good job and is now expecting his second child in the coming months.

Then on a bright and sunny morning in the suburb of Burlingame Oregon the young man is just sitting down on the couch with potato chips in one hand and a remote control in other for the upcoming college football game when there is a knock at the door. Disappointed that he has to get up and answer the door because his wife and child are visiting her mother he puts down his implements of pleasure and relaxation and shuffles to the door to see who is interrupting his religious schedule. Make no mistake, he loves his family but he also loves those moments of solitude that family life seldom affords.

When he opens the door he is absolutely flabbergasted by what he sees. You see, the front door to his apartment has a three leveled staircase that goes from the sidewalk on the street straight up to his door. This is also why he is almost never interrupted on his “football” days because the trek up to his door is enough to give a coronary to the young and fit.

There, gathered on his front porch and extending the entire length of the stairway were people. I mean packed. The two people standing directly outside his door, a man and woman then asked if he was Steven Ross which confused him because it meant that these people were actually there for him. Speechless, he nodded yes, and there was a cacophony of voices erupting from the gathered crowd and the two people outside his door stepped forward and hugged him. Still, he was speechless, but now also confused.

They then told him who they were and why they were there. These were the members and their families of that skiff he helped to pluck from the sea that bright and glorious day. They explained, now able and in English, that after many unsuccessful attempts to get his name and locate him through the Department of Defense. They had succeeded by talking to a prior shipmate of his.  It turned out that 32 of those people were repatriated to Oregon from Hong Kong as they had extended family there. They wanted him to come to their home for a celebration in his honor. 

It was at that very moment, years later and thousands of miles away, did he realize what he represented to these people. To him it was just another day on board ship but to them it meant life in the literal sense. The realization was so overwhelming for him. 

He likes to tell this story from time to time when speaking to a large group of executives or just ordinary folks because he viewed this lesson that he had learned as life altering. How many times do have you hear somebody say ”What can I do, I am only one person?” Every action that you make has a ripple effect, sometimes good and sometimes bad depending on the situation.  You can alter the trajectory of someone else without ever knowing it.  

When my wife came home that day, he explained to her what had happened and to his surprise she didn’t believe him. In those days he was quite the prankster and being the only one in his direct orbit she bore the brunt of some of his jests. The following evening as he was getting ready to go to this next adventure she still didn’t believe him, but low and behold, when they arrived at the residence in N Portland and walked up to the door she started to understand. Before they answered his knock, she looked at him and asked - “you weren’t kidding, were you?”