Who's your Sammy?

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Originally Posted by From the Return of the King, Mount Doom

He bent over Frodo, rousing him gently. Frodo groaned; but with a great effort of will he staggered up; and then he fell to his knees again. He raised his eyes with difficulty to the dark slopes of Mount Doom towering above him, and then pitifully he began to crawl forward on his hands.

Sam looked at him and wept in his heart, but no tears came to his dry and stinging eyes. 'I said I'd carry him, if it broke my back,' he muttered, 'and I will!'

Come, Mr. Frodo!' he cried. 'I can't carry it for you, but I can carry you and it as well. So up you get! Come on, Mr. Frodo dear! Sam will give you a ride. Just tell him where to go, and he'll go.'

This passage about Sam's carrying Frodo up Mount Doom reminds me of the familiar 'footprints in the sand' poem regarding Jesus Christ walking beside and sometimes carrying a man. That got me to wondering: Was there a 'Sam' in your life? Was there someone who, at times, helped you along your life journey, was there when you were down and even carried you (literally or figuratively) when you truly could not walk anymore?

Note that Sam's help never weakens Frodo, and when Frodo takes a wrong turn, Sam's not the one with the "I told 'e so" criticism that seeks more to hurt than teach.

I'm looking back through my life and think that I've spotted my Sammy. While I'm reminiscing the details, maybe I can read about yours.