Bogged Down In Boots

Standing in mud up to his waist, Leo cried out to his mom for help. It had just rained and he decided to go out and play in the mud puddles. From the side door, he had looked up and down the road and decided the ditches looked inviting. There wasn’t much traffic on the dead-end road where they lived, so he felt safe playing alone in the mud.

He knew he wasn’t allowed to go very far, but the water flowing over the asphalt and into the ditch looked like a good place to play in the water. Leo stood about 3 1/2 feet tall and seemed to get into a lot of trouble. With his mom and baby sister in the other room, he knew that he would be able to sneak away and go.

He wanted to be so much like his dad and wear the camouflage clothes, pack a gun, and defend his country. He had heard his dad talk about their training and having to train through muddy swamps. So he went outside on the covered porch, slipped on his mock army boots, and headed down the road.

It was a nice day out and the temperature was probably in the mid 80s, so he didn’t care if his outgrown shorts and bare chest got dirty. He was suppose to be napping while his mom fed and put the baby to sleep. But, when he saw from the kitchen door those ditches, he already had in mind what he was going to do.

He wasn’t planning on the ditches being that deep until he took the first step off the side of the road. He slid down the slippery hill and landed hard in the ditch. His head slightly went under the water and he jumped up catching his breath. Immediately, he was shaking from the cold water not realizing that rainwater was cold even though the temperature was warm out.

He wiped his face from the muddy water and looked around to decide which way to go. When he stepped into the ditch, he had kind of gone up an incline of a hill to reach the spot where he went in, so he decided to work his way back to the house. The rain had just stopped, but somehow those ditches were still filling up. As he kept going further down the hill back toward the house, he realized the water was getting deeper and now it was up to his waist.

The fields on both side of the road had recently been plowed and mud settled to the bottom of the ditch. He stood there for a while pondering on what he should do. He thought to himself, “ Should I turn around and go back up the hill or should I keep going?” His thoughts went back to his dad who is fighting overseas. He wondered what his dad would do if it were him. But he knew the answer. He knew that his dad was not a quitter and he would keep going.

He had been standing there a while, not realizing that he was sinking into the mud a little bit. As he lifted his leg to take a step, his foot came out of his boot while the boot stayed put in the mud. Those were his favorite boots that his dad gave him for his Birthday before he left on duty. There was no way he was going to leave those to drown.

So he thought to himself that he would use the other foot and step first. To his surprise, that boot was stuck too. Now he was really going to be into some big trouble with his mom. What was he going to do? If he went down to try to get his boots out, his head would be in the water and that would be dangerous.

Even if he reached with his short arms, he knew that he would not be able to get that shoe out without drowning or swallowing a bunch of nasty water. The only thing left to do was to scream as loud as he could to see if his mom would hear him. Since it was warm out that day, he left the big door open to the screen door. That was his only hope!

He screamed to the top of his lungs until he finally saw his mother pushing the screen door open and running toward him. He knew he was going to be in just so much trouble. But to his surprise, his mom came running faster than he’d ever seen her run. She jumped right on in the ditch with him, reached down in the water and grabbed his boots with the legs in them, and pulled him up and out of the water at once.

She stared at him in amazement as she set him up on the road. He thought she was going to spank him with that look of terror in her eyes. But then that frown turn into a smile. That smile turned into a laugh. Not knowing what to expect, he began to laugh with her. She pointed to his boot and started laughing even harder. He looked down to his right and his eyes got wide. Not only did she pull him out of the ditch, but she pulled a crawdad out too!

He reached down and pulled the struggling crawdad out and realized the poor thing was almost dead because of the mud that it had encased around it. He rinsed it off in the murky water and set it on the embankment. His mom had stopped laughing and he looked up to see tears rolling down her cheeks.

She spoke with him about the dangers of rain water and ditches all the way back to the house. He was waiting for a spank by the time she finished, but he knew he worried her and knew his dad would not have done that – or so he thought! She took the water hose and sprayed the both of them off. When she was finished, she sat him on the step.

With a sad look she said, “You disappointed me by running out into danger while you were suppose to be napping while I was putting the baby down for her nap. What kind of punishment do you think you deserve?” He thought for a bit about her giving him the opportunity to pick his own punishment. He then apologized, got up, and bent over her lap. She swatted him on his bottom a few times. He didn’t cry but felt shame for failing.

As he headed back to his bedroom, he thought about the punishment that he deserved. He wasn’t doing what he was supposed to do. He knew that he hurt her and worried her. He knew that he was not big enough to fit into his dad’s boots yet.

Across the world in another country, his dad was waist high and swampy water. They heard something on the other side of a slight hill and stopped. As they stood still and listened, he felt his feet sink deeper into the sticky muck below him. They were in pursuit of traffickers who were selling women and children to drug lords.

The first set of Marines had already hit the hill and were peeking over the edge. Each had their hand up to let the others know to hold still. No one in the group moved an inch. They could see the commander assessing the situation and they all prepared to move forward to save this group of women and children. His mind raced back to his wife and children. He couldn’t imagine someone torturing them to sell and not being able to do anything about it.

The commander motioned his orders to his group and all prepared to move forward to save these women and children. Leo’s dad stepped forward and his boot stayed put. He felt with his foot to find the opening and slide his foot back into the boot. With a few twists and turns the boot was freed. Before he took the next step, he turned and twisted again to unlock the other boot.

With all his might, he was immediately back in line with his fellow Marines. They surprised this group of traffickers within minutes and were able to take over the situation. All seemed to be in control, but something in Leo’s dad’s heart was troubled. He sensed something wasn’t right back home and couldn’t wait to call at the first chance he could get.

The commander and his group, the traffickers that were found and arrested, and those thankful women and children made it back to their post within hours of the raid. He picks up his phone and called home. Leo answered the phone and was so excited to hear his dad’s voice on the other end.

He is so down on himself for what he has done that he confessed to his dad over the phone. His dad quietly said, “As I was stuck in muck, I was feeling that something wasn’t right at home. We were both waist deep at the same time, we both lost our boots at one point, and we both made it out someway or another.”

His father told him, “I pressed on as you pressed on, but I rescued and you were rescued. Son, there is no shame in calling out for help when you need it. I remained quiet to save and you called out to be saved. I am proud of you for doing what was right at the right time. I am proud of you for excepting your punishment and I am proud of you for wearing your boots!”

Within two weeks, his dad was home and he felt the need to teach Leo a new lesson. It had just poured down raining when Leo’s dad looked toward the ditch where Leo about lost his boots. He looked at Leo with a big grin on his face, took Leo’s hand, helped him into his boots, and headed to the ditch.

They stood in that ditch until the weight of their bodies sunk into the mud. His dad showed him how to twist about and free his boots from the mud. They had a connection that day while each was so far away from each other, yet they were so close.

For all of you families that are away from each other for the Holidays, just remember there is somehow always a connection between you. Simple values that you teach your family are the most precious gifts you can give. Cherish those moments that you have with each other so that those memories will be so embedded that you will never forget them.

Thank you to each and every service man or woman for your dedication and protection! We are blessed beyond our deserving! May your boots keep you walking. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!