Wanted

Among the most compelling want-ads I’ve come across while doing research on the Old West is an advertisement that initially ran in a London newspaper. British Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton placed the ad in preparation for the National Antarctic Expedition (which subsequently failed to reach the South Pole). Shackleton later said of the call for volunteers that “it seemed as though all the men in Great Britain were determined to accompany me, the response was so overwhelming.” The advertisement read as follows: MEN WANTED FOR HAZARDOUS JOURNEY. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honor and recognition in case of success. I am inspired by the courage of men like Shackleton. The characters John Wayne and Jeffrey Hunter played in the film The Searchers are equally as courageous in my estimation. Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a believer more in bullets than in words. He’s seeking his niece, captured by Comanche who massacred his family. He won’t surrender to hunger, thirst, the elements or loneliness. And in his obsessive, five-year quest, Ethan encounters something he didn’t expect to find: his own humanity. Hunter plays the brother of the kidnap victim in the picture. He absolutely will not give up on finding his sister. I can identify with the characters in that film. You’d be surprised at the lengths you will go for a lost loved one. I’d gladly give up my life to save my brother’s. I travel back to Missouri this week to try and get help for my brother. Some tough decisions will have to be made. Heartache will surely ensue. I covet all the prayers I can get in this situation. It’s been eight long years. When I feel like giving up I think about Shackleton’s ad and his expedition and of a particular line from The Searchers. In the film Wayne’s character is asked by the Reverend, played by Ward Bond, if he wants to quit combing the territory for his niece, give up and go home. Wayne’s character responds with a simple but forceful “That’ll be the day.” That’s how I feel about giving up on Rick – “That’ll be the day.”