Captain John was a smart dashing Jet pilot. John flew many consecutive successful combat missions. In a combat mission his fighter plane was destroyed by a missile. He however ejected himself and parachuted safely. He won acclaims and appreciations from many.

After five years, one day he was sitting with his wife in a restaurant. A man from another table came to him and said “You’re Captain John! You flew jet fighters. You were shot down!”

“How in the world did you know that?” asked John.

“I packed your parachute,” the man smiled and replied. John gasped in surprise and gratitude and thought if parachute hadn’t worked, I wouldn’t be here today. John couldn’t sleep that night, thinking about that man. He wondered how many times I might have seen him and not even said ‘Good morning, how are you?’ or anything because, he was a fighter pilot and that person was just an engineer.

Friends, who’s packing your parachute?

Everyone has someone who provides what they need to make it through the day. We need many kinds of parachutes when our plane is shot down – we need the physical parachute, the mental parachute, the emotional parachute, and the spiritual parachute. We call on all these supports before reaching safety.

How many times in life do you pass the people who help you out the most? The people who come out of the far corners of your life just when you need them the most and pack your parachutes for you? The people who go the extra mile, the people who don’t look for the kudos or the accolades or the achievement medal, or even the bonus check–the folks who are just out there packing parachutes?

Sometimes in the daily challenges that life gives us, we miss what is really important. We may fail to say “hello”, “please”, or “thank you”, “good job,” or “I appreciate what you do”.

Look around your organisation / your life for the people who pack your parachute and tell them how much you appreciate them and how important the things they do for you truly are. In the end, it might just be them who save your life or your business–or at least save the day.

As you go through this week, this month, this year, recognise the people who pack your parachute.