Family Legend

My twelve-year-old grandson and I were re-organizing the garage when he came across a sealed clear plastic container. The only item inside was a rusty old can with a dent in it. The can was unopened and had a faded label. He took the can out of the plastic box, held it up to the light, and shook it a few times, searching for a reason to keep it.

“Grandpa, why do you have this old can? Shouldn’t we throw it away?

“We can never get rid of that can, Dominic. It’s the reason our family is all here today.”

“It is? I don’t understand what a can has to do with our family being here,” said the boy as he turned the container over and over, searching for a clue.

“Take a seat, Dom. It’s time I tell you about the legend of the can.”

They both opened folding chairs, placed them on the garage floor, and the grandfather launched into his story.

“I know you’ve been told our family originally lived in France. Just before our ancestors came to this country, a man named Napoleon ruled that country. What he wanted to do was become the ruler of all of Europe. He put together a massive army. Keeping food fresh for his soldiers was an enormous problem. Preserved food was stored in heavy glass jars that frequently broke.

“In 1808, a Frenchman named Nicolas Appert invented the can. It was heavier than today’s cans because the metal he used was thicker. Napoleon heard about Appert’s invention and began supplying his army with food stored in cans instead of glass jars. Each soldier was ordered to carry canned rations with them when deployed.”

The man looked at his grandson and smiled. The boy displayed a bewildered look on his face as he tried to work out what all this had to do with him.

“I know what you’re thinking, my boy. Just listen for a little while longer, and it will all make sense. Your great, great, great, great, grandfather was a soldier in Napoleon’s army before he moved to America. There was an enormous battle in the town of Leipzig, Germany, in 1813. During the fight, a musket ball struck our ancestor in the chest and would have killed him if it wasn’t for that can. The thick-walled can deflected the bullet, keeping it from doing any serious harm. That’s why the can has a crease on its side. If it hadn’t been for that can, your great, great, great, great, grandfather would have died, and none of us would have ever been born. The can is a true family heirloom.”

“Wow, Grandpa, this can is special! When I get old enough, I want to be the one to guard the can.”

“When the time is right, the can will be yours to protect.”

They were placing the can in storage when the door separating the kitchen from the garage opened.

“Time for lunch, boys,” Grandma said in a cheery voice.

As Dom rushed past her, he said, I’m going to be the guardian of the can one day, Grandma.”

“That’s nice, Dom. Now go get washed for lunch.” Then she looked at her husband and shook her head. “Are you spreading that old story again? You know it’s just an unverified legend.”

“Maybe it’s just a story, and maybe it’s true. What I know is it made Dom think about those that came before him. It put him in touch with history. That’s never a bad thing.” He gave his wife a brief hug and said, “What’s for lunch?”