Sometimes things just aren’t the way they seem. As we all know, it is so easy to judge people by their outward behavior, only to get pleasantly surprised to find out there is much more lurking inside. I am reminded of a TV character from years ago. For those of you who watched the program, Mash, you’ll recall that Colonel Potter (played by the late Harry Morgan) was a tough taskmaster. But the more programs we watched, the more we learned he was a softy at heart.
Students at St. Francis High School near L. A. thought they knew Jim O’Connor, their calculus teacher. On the surface, in the classroom, they found the 70-year-old vet of Viet Nam to be crusty and hard-nosed. In a story reported by Steve Hartman (12/21/13), they learned about a whole new dimension.
First, when they showed up for a blood drive at Children’s’ Hospital, they found out that Mr. O’Connor’s name was on a plaque. He was at the top of a listing of blood donors. Then they were most surprised to hear hospital staff refer to their teacher in glowing terms. They found out that, in addition to donating blood, he had also volunteered in a most unexpected way—he held sick babies, often feeding them. He wanted to give the parents a break, and the babies usually enjoyed his loving attention. Nurses reported he had a special knack for calming the babies down.
The students were surprised and thrilled to hear Jim O’Connor had such a soft side. And they were astounded when told that the unmarried, childless, man had not been loving on these sick babies for just a few years. Would you believe three times a week for twenty years? Hats off to you, Jim O’Connor, for demonstrating such Love Lived Large.