In drivel there can be truth, if you look for it

It begins with a photo - stolen without giving proper credit (this came from a US Air Force publication which only states "courtesy photo" a larger version can be found at Snopes).

The picture is both chilling and heart-warming enough, seeing the wound and then seeing the peace of both of them sleeping.

Okay, fine. So far, so good.

Then, some numb nut, Reader's Digest wannabe writer (and I mean that in the most derogatory manner possible) "improves" on the story.

To wit:

The little girl pictured below had her entire family executed by insurgents recently in Iraq . They also intended to kill her, as they shot her in the head. She was found bleeding a day later by U.S. Lt. John Gebhardt, who rushed her to St. John's Hospital for care. The little girl continued to cry & moan in pain, &she would not sleep at night. Nurses began to realize that the only time she was happy was when Lt. Gerbhardt would visit her, she smiles &plays like a normal 3 year old when he's around. Also when Lt. Gebhardt stayed overnight one night the littlle girl slept for 11 hours. Realizing what he means to the little girl, Lt. Gebhardt sleeps every night at the hospital with this little girl & as a result her wounds are healing just fine. He is an example of what a hero really is... Lt. Gebhardt & his wife are in the process of trying to adopt the 3 year whom they now call Lily..

He is a real Star of the war.

This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD! Go for it!!

We begin with the most obvious. The man in the picture is wearing the insignia of a United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant. Besides his regular duties, he volunteered at the hospital where the picture was taken.

It gets better.

The little girl pictured below had her entire family executed by insurgents recently in Iraq

From the 10 November 2006 article in Air Force Link about the famous photo taken a "month ago" - The young infant had received extensive gunshot injuries to her head when insurgents attacked her family killing both of her parents and many of her siblings. - Air Force Link, the official website of the United States Air Force

She was found bleeding a day later by U.S. Lt. John Gebhardt, who rushed her to St. John's Hospital for care.

Unless Boy George Bush and his band of thugs have screwed up the war even more than we know, USAF medical master sergeants are not pulling combat patrol duty. It is not St. John's Hospital. It is the medical facility at Balad Air Force Base in Iraq, which is - wait for it - John's hospital, as that indeed is USAF Chief Master Sergeant John Gebhardt.

Also when Lt. Gebhardt stayed overnight one night the littlle girl slept for 11 hours. Realizing what he means to the little girl, Lt. Gebhardt sleeps every night at the hospital with this little girl & as a result her wounds are healing just fine.

The chief had a knack for comforting her and they often would catch a cat nap together in a chair. - Air Force Link, the official website of the United States Air Force

Lt. Gebhardt & his wife are in the process of trying to adopt the 3 year whom they now call Lily

If you read the article in the Air Force Link, there is no mention of any adoption and the article refers to the "3 year" as an "infant".

He is a real Star of the war.

This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD! Go for it!!

No argument there. but I do have one caveat. Share the article, but share the truth, as it's simplicity is far more magnificent than the manufactured schlock. Also, share it for the tenderness and compassion it represents, not to advance some agenda . . . any agenda.

Please read the full article in Air Force Link, from whence comes the picture. Also, feel free to check out the article on the urban myth busters Snopes site.

When the sap is running high in one of these emails, check out Snopes or just do a simple search. You may find a truth far more meaningful than the shallow, trite fiction.

Finally, if you ever have received an email with a photo of a flag-draped coffin being unloaded from an airliner as passengers look on, it probably contained some sorry drivel and flag-waving pseudo-patriotic nonsense. If you really want to read something moving, go to the source. Go the to Rocky Mountain News and read an excellent piece of journalism called "Final Salute".

You probably will cry.

I did.