In the US, the Coast Guard are the ones who go out on tumultuous seas when all other watercraft head for shelter. They are the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service of the US Armed Forces. They are veterans, too.
Where I live, along the southern curve of Lake Superior on a jut of land known as the Keweenaw Peninsula, maritime life saving once fell to the lifesavers. Before we had diesel-powered Coast Guard ships, we had rowboats.
Okay, maybe not rowboats like you’d take a date on a placid pond. They were wooden, though, and powered by humans. Can you imagine a furious storm on Lake Superior with gales forceful enough to sink an iron ore steamer? Then imagine the rescuers seeking to pull sailors from the waves in wooden boats powered manually with oars.
You can see some of their equipment in this video of our local Life Saving Museum in Eagle Harbor, thirty miles north of headquarters of Carrot Ranch.
Even today, it must take great courage to face a storm. The Coast Guard still has several life saving stations, both on our Portage Canal that accommodated freighters to haul copper. Their 47-foot dual engine boats are designed for dangerous water rescues.
Life savers were often forgotten to history. My friend Barb, married a Vietnam veteran, back in 1980. His family lived and worked on the Keweenaw for many generations. One was a surfman, or an early Coast Guard life saver. When Barb did some genealogy and found out about this man and his deeds, saving lives, she realized that no one had ever collected all the names of the life savers that served our peninsula.
What started out as a family project led to the recognition of over 300 life savers. Barb even found descendants, which led to interest in forming the local museum where her research resides.
Barb was one of the first people I met when I arrived to the Keweenaw three and a half years ago. She had just battled cancer and returned to the Warrior Sisters group where I had found my welcome. Of course, we hit it off quickly, both sharing a love of history and recovering forgotten voices.
Two years ago during the 2018 Flash Fiction Rodeo, I highlighted Barb’s work. She had recently been honored for her research and given a week’s stay at the light-keeper’s house in Eagle Harbor.
Waves surged relentlessly against the craggy rocks of Eagle Harbor where I went to write for a few days as a guest of Keweenaw historian, Barb Koski. It was mid-October, and the gales of November had come even earlier than when the Edmond’s Fitzgerald went down. Barb’s expertise in maritime history focuses on the heroics of the surfmen — those who went out into the wind-driven swells in small boats to rescue the crews of large ships.
Like Barb, many who live, work or attend secondary education on the Keweenaw Peninsula fall in love with the area’s natural beauty and endless outdoor activities. Barb showed me many natural wonders and historic structures during our getaway. If you spend any time outdoors on the Keweenaw, you can’t escape the area’s bold history of industrial copper mining.
On October 18, 2020, my friend, fellow historian, and Warrior Sister, Barb Koski died peacefully at home. Earlier that week, led by our fearless widow, the Warrior Sisters sat with her, laid on hands, prayed, and said goodbyes. Sitting at her feet was the teddy bear we bought her, the one Barb named Precious. She took Precious everywhere.
At her visitation on Monday, Precious sat near her once again. Barb’s daughter said they thought about cremating Precious with Barb, but her husband wanted to keep the bear. Now Precious goes with him. The next day we all gathered once again, the Warrior Sisters and my Hub in a single pew.
Barb was a life saver. She cared deeply for others and could sit with them in their pain. She rescued those who risked their lives from obscurity. In thinking what kind of stories Barb would like, I’m pointing us all toward the fury of the sea, inland or elsewhere, to write about life savers who dare face the waves and the storms.
October 30, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about life savers on any body of water. It can be a formal Coast Guard, historical or contemporary. It could be an individual who unexpectedly takes on the role. Go where the prompt leads!
Respond by November 3, 2020. Use the comment section below to share, read, and be social. You may leave a link, pingback, or story in the comments. If you want to be published in the weekly collection, please use the form. Rules & Guidelines.
Submissions now closed. Find our latest challenge to enter.
In Remembrance by Charli Mills
Beatrice Hayes served Coast Guard Station Portage for three years, respecting the deadly furies of Lake Superior. Cruising the canal on a clear day, she could spot old shipwrecks below the water’s surface. To the west, she assisted in setting up the buoy system. When she heard kayakers were gathering to honor a local historian who researched her historical predecessors, Beatrice mustered the fleet from cruisers to icebreaker to Kodiaks and posted an honor guard. Women in kayaks tossed daisies, reciting the names of life savers who had served these waters, ending with the woman who wrote their biographies.
🥕🥕🥕
wow
Thanks for reading, Beth
[…] Carrot Ranch Flash Fiction October 30, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about life savers on any body of water. It can be a formal Coast Guard, historical or contemporary. It could be an individual who unexpectedly takes on the role. Go where the prompt leads! Respond by November 3, 2020. […]
Charli… double Wow.
(Oh… the URL thingy isn’t working to add links… it will only accept email addresses)
I went in a slightly different lifesaving direction. Blame it on Goldie… she asked for more… and well it’s been working so far. At my blog post I do have a link for all the 99 word segments. But here’s:
Damned Family #5
I decided to stay an extra day at the motel. I hadn’t gotten much sleep, and in my quest to do something, anything I unpacked and repacked my luggage. Odd that I never used the outside pockets – but there was a journal in one of my suitcases. Ships at Sea! The writing was in my ex husband’s hand. My eyes blurred, filled with tears. How was I going to read this – especially now? After I claimed I didn’t know he was the dead body that I found yesterday.
coasting on cold waves
an anchor of memories
a hidden journal
©JP/dh
Slight revision for clarification…
Damned Family #5
I decided to stay an extra day at the motel. I hadn’t gotten much sleep, and in my quest to do something, anything I unpacked and repacked my luggage. Odd that I never used the outside pockets – but there was a journal in one of my suitcases. Ships at Sea! The writing was in my ex husband’s hand. My eyes blurred, filled with tears. How was I going to read this – especially now? After I claimed I didn’t know who the dead body was that I found yesterday.
coasting on cold waves
an anchor of memories
a hidden journal
©JP/dh
Keep rollin with it Jules.
*Up to 12 now…. Thanks.*
Ah, Jules, I’ll learn these blocks, yet. Thanks for letting me know. It’s fixed. Goldie is inciting a series, I see! That’s one heck of a twist, too that she claimed not to know her own husband! Carry on…we’ll need to know more.
I may have to carry on without prompts! But I think I like sticking to the 99 words. I’ll have to see how long that lasts. 😉
It’s fun when a story grabs ahold of you! Be careful — this one appears dangerous!
I had the same issue with the website/emails, too. It was weird…
But yes, I’m pushing Jules to the limits. She doesn’t seem to have any, yet.
Ha! And like that, Goldie and Jules rode off into the limitless sunset!
I loved this piece, Jules. So poignant. Your poetry really adds to it! <3
Thank you. 😀
I’m glad you had Barb for the time that you did. Her story says much about the community that she enriched, the community that you have joined. I know that she, and all her Warrior Sisters, are life savers. This was a tough post. Thank you for sharing it with us here at the Ranch. Now promise us all that you’ll take good care of yourself.
Thanks for reading about Barb. I’ll be dancing beneath the full blue moon tomorrow no matter how many words still need writing. Self care. 😉
Into the Storm
Through rain pelted windows Marlie’s tree fort hove into view. Marlie read, curled up with Daisy on the couch.
“Remember when she used to sail in weather like this, captaining a mighty ship?”
“Remember when she made Tommy walk the plank?”
“Do you miss Tommy, Liz?”
“For better or worse, I do. I miss our opportunity to give Tommy a respite from his family. The great unmasked… What’s Marlie researching now?”
“Life savers.”
“The candy? Or health care workers?”
“Life Savers- nascent Coast Guard.”
Putting her book aside Marlie donned her foul weather gear. She had to go out.
Marlie returned and just in time to face the storm!
I only now got to my own site to post this Marlie story. Oh, that’s because I didn’t believe this morning that it was finished. It wasn’t. There’s another 99. https://shiftnshake.wordpress.com/2020/10/30/crlc-challenge-lifesavers/
part 2:
“Who will rescue us, Bill?”
“What? Are we a wreck?” He crowded into the window seat. Beyond the steamy window, Marlie braved the high seas to pluck Destiny from the surf.
“Not us. Us. /U/ /S/. Of A?”
“Oh. Ship of fools. Headed for the rocks.”
“We’ve been commandeered by pirates, with a fool spinning the helm. I’m scared Bill.”
“Me too.”
“Oh! Marlie! You’ve returned.”
“Mom? Dad?”
“We’re huddled in our lifeboat, Marlie. Get in.”
Marli climbed in with her parents and assessed their circumstances. “It’s going to be rough. But we’ll make it. All storms peter out.”
All storms do pass. Or peter out.
Haven’t checked on this one; hunkered low today.
Whiskey in a Storm
“Ah, Ernie, you’re a lifesaver!”
“It’s jist whiskey, Pal.”
“Yer a port in the storm, Ernie, a safe haven as I go a-sailin’ back ta the Ranch.”
“Thinkin’ ya might already be three sheets, there, Pal. An’, ya look like ya seen a ghost.”
“I did, last week. It was spooky. Afore thet I worked my fingers ta the bone doin’ chores at my cuzzins’ turnip farm, an thet dispite wearin’ kid gloves.”
“Speakin’ a which, where’s Kid at?”
“Dunno. Took separate trails fer our vacation. Mighta saved Kid’s life, thet break.”
“Missin’ Kid, ain’tcha?”
“Been a long month.”
####
Bacon in a Storm
Though spooked, Kid made it back to Carrot Ranch. Kid had never been so long and far away from the barns and bunkhouse without Pal; the whole month had seemed like one long dark and stormy night. Now the sun rising over Shorty’s cookhouse was like a lightbulb overhead. Idea!
By the time Shorty came on the scene, Kid had stacked large rocks in a circle.
“Buildin’ a fire ring?”
“Foundation fer a lighthouse. Thinkin’ we need a beacon.”
“The Ranch is a beacon, an’ a safe harbor. Come on, Kid, I’ll fix ya some bacon.”
Kid lightened up.
https://shiftnshake.wordpress.com/ranch-yarns-2020/
Jist wunerful! A tap room with poet-tree, fairies or elves and a beacon for direction ‘n dedication. …ah the smell of good food cooking. Can I have some flap jacks too?
Bacon’s da beacon dat beckons, but if yer vegan i’m beggin yer pardon.
Turkey Bacon’s not quite the same, but it still works… 😉
Things are returning to normal with changes for the better. Flapjacks and bacon, take yer pick or take both!
Awww, these stories really touch my heart. <3
Thanks, it’s good to hear.
I will be over here more often. I promise. <3
I enjoyed Pal’s replay of the weekly challenges. I think we’ve all missed Pal and Kid as they vacated and vacationed away from the Ranch. It will be great to have them hanging around again – even their mate who hangs around like a bad smell at times. Welcome back, Pal and Kid.
They were here and there, just separate. It was interesting to write them third person for a change. But yep, I suspect they’ll be reunited soon. Perhaps at a saloon near you.
I’ll look out for them and perhaps buy them a drink. 🙂
Surfaces
The eyes, if they’re eyes, stare along the cresting water.
The head, if it is a head, bobs.
“See?” she says. “There!”
“Kelp bulb,” I state. “That’s all.”
“Let’s get closer.”
I hesitate.
The sea is enraged.
The wind is rising up.
Rocks!
Slippery!
Deadly!
Ones balance, hard to maintain.
“Are you coming?”
“Don’t be foolhardy,” I howl, whilst the furious wind works overtime to drown me out.
“Fine! Stay put. But I’m going closer.”
She moves out of my reach.
Towards the waters edge.
I am transfixed.
She strips to the essentials.
“NO!” I scream.
She dives in.
You took me right to the edge, Bill. The heart of every life save must be stout. I saw a video clip of a man washed off the breakers in a gale and his girlfriend managed to save him. Well done!
How suspenseful! The end… yikes! <3
Spooky and scary, both.
Happy Halloween, indeed!
(grabs a Snickers for comfort, and crawls under a blanket to hide)
Brave girl! I hope it really was a pair of eyes staring along that cresting water! Gulp!
I want the sequel. Was it Lord Jim where the guy doesn’t, then the ship don’t and he’s found out to be a coward and a knave? So your guy could be hat guy. Or, she was indeed foolish and perhaps in over her head. Untrained or weak swimmers get drowned saving people, despite their good intentions. What I meant to say was, well told, this.
my favorite branch of the military!
I’m pleased to hear that! My husband wanted to go into the Coast Guard, but a recruiter for the Army got to him. Either way, he was bound to serve.
he’s a good man, Charli (Brown)… 🙂
Ha, ha! That made me smile, Jim!
Coasties are big in my old port. And the old life saving stations all along the cape and islands, look just like those in Michigan. Its hard when we have to say goodbye to Coastie families when they get transferred.
Coasties! I’ll have to remember that name.
that must be hard to say goodbye to people you get close to…
One of The boys makes a revelation this week
‘Logan, there’s a pool. Let’s go swim.’
‘No thanks. I’ll catch forty winks.’
‘Come on!’
‘I’ll go for a walk later.’
‘This is America. No one walks.’
‘I’m not swimming.’
‘I’ve a spare cozzie.’
‘I’m not wearing your clothes.’
‘Come on. It….’
‘No!’
‘What’s got into you?’
‘I can’t swim.’
‘You can’t?’
‘I’m phobic.’
‘What? The superheroic Logan is scared of water?’
‘I nearly drowned. Mr Dunk saved me.’
‘Great name.’
‘I’d given up. I was going down for the third time.’
‘Mate, I didn’t know. Anyway, time you got back on the horse.’
‘I’m not doing that either…’
More phobias reveal, including the ominous horse fear!
Good one, Geoff. I’m with Logan. We don’t always have to get back on.
Quite. Better sometimes to accept you’ll never want another go
Not always easy to get back on! The second time I got on a horse was with a person who didn’t have the experience to teach me properly. It was a racehorse, and he took into a gallop. I got off safely but it could’ve been a very different story. I haven’t been on a horse since!
I had a few close shaves in the water, but I still go swimming. (Gentle swimming within my depth) There’s lots of Logans out there.
I had a loganesque experience at 12 and while I’ve fought to overcome it, even managing snorkeling it’s never been easy
Poor Logan, at sea with his own personal storms. How is he with goats?
He’s trying to ignore them. Fortunately the motel they’re staying in has a goat park….
[…] 30, 2020, Carrot Ranch Flash Fiction prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about life savers on any body of water. It can be a […]
I’m so sorry for the loss of your dear friend, Charli. I know she lives in your heart. <3 I honor all the women of the water… <3
The Blessings of Ziva
“Hurry or we’ll be late, Bisera. We have to be there before sunrise,” called Emika.
Bisera balanced the jug on her hip without spilling a drop. “I’m right behind you, Emika. Did you remember to bring the apple?”
“I found the last red apple in the bin. The apple and the water are our offerings to Ziva, the ancient goddess of water.”
Bisera reached the river and tumbled toward the icy depths. “Help me.”
Emika grabbed the girl’s scarf and saved her from harm.
“Thank you, Emika. The goddess put you in the right place at the right time.”
***
On the eve of the New Year, in ancient Slavic countries, the young maidens took offerings of water and apples to the local river to honor the goddess Ziva. (Ziva, the Slavic Goddess of Water, whose name itself means life).
I enjoyed your story, Colleeen, and then even more with the addition of historical context.
Thanks, Norah. I love playing with bits of mythology. ❤️
A perfect combination.
Water is of women. As the Anishinaabe also say, women are the containers for water, and water, like Ziva, is life. Thank you, Colleen. Barb will long live in my heart and she certainly left me lots of research for my fiction writing. We plan to honor her with a kayak brigade, tossing daisies next spring. I will make sure we read the names of all the life savers. And end with Barb’s.
That’s beautiful, Charli. I didn’t know Barb, but feel her spirit through you. She’s always with you. ❤️
Thank you. <3
Enjoyed reading the mythology of Ziva – it reminded me of an NCIS character of the same name. Who may or may not have been named for such… but the character continued to Live on – even after a false death.
That’s right! I love Slavic mythology as much as Celtic mythology. Great history there. 🎃
We have some of that Slavic ancestry on my hubby’s side 🙂
Both sides of my family are German Russians-wheat farmers.
Interesting Colleen. I always enjoy Goddess stories.
Thanks, Gloria. I think every culture has goddess stories. I love them as well. ❤️
Yes, like Norah I liked the story and the info. Wonder, if we were more thoughtful with the offerings, or at least offered up more thoughtfulness, might the storms be less fierce. These days.
Thoughtfulness and empathy are sorely lacking in our world. I like the offerings as a way to say thanks for letting us be here. We take too much for granted.
[…] and grow as a writer. This week we are challenged by the community’s leader, Charli Mills, to write about lifesavers, and though the Coast Guard and their predecessors were implicated, as ever, we go where the prompt […]
What a lovely tribute to Barb, Charli. I remember your spending time at the lighthouse with her. What a magic time and a precious memory. And how wonderful that she brought the lives of so many forgotten ones to light. She shone the light on others, as you have now shone the light on her. Sending hugs and support for you in your time of loss.
Thank you, Norah. Yes, Barb was one to shine the light. I can do my part and carry on with that. We certainly need light these days! Hugs!
Yes. We do need as much light as we can get.
I’m very sorry to hear about the loss of your friend, Charli. She sounds like a wonderful person!
That she was, Becky! Thank you.
Here’s my take on the prompt for this week. https://sixcrookedhighwaysblog.wordpress.com/2020/10/31/the-lifesaver/
The Lifesaver
Around midnight, he would walk down to the bridge and wait, with one foot resting on the bottom rail, staring into the tidal shift below. He would wait for a stranger to appear at the other end of the bridge, mirroring his stance. ‘Time to go’ he would announce and hoist himself onto the second rail. The stranger would come running, yelling ’What are you doing?’ ‘Ending the pain’ he would say. And the stranger would pull him down and take him to the all-night coffee stand just off the bridge. He’d lost count of the lives he’d saved.
Love this, Doug, and didn’t see where it was going so a nice uplift.
Thanks, Anne.
That’s a beautiful story and not what I expected of the character. I like how this lifesaver lets others fulfill the role and reevaluate their own despair.
I love this story, Doug. It’s beautiful, yet I glimpsed a dark side to it too. Maybe that’s just me, but you told the story so well.
Many thanks, Hugh
Felt a wee punch at the end. Wonderful Doug, but quite tragic too.
Many thanks, Gloria.
Well, what a fine twist, and a twisted way to save lives, but reckon if it works it’s not broken. Huh?
Nice flash!
Hi Charli,
My prayers for you and the Warrior Sisters in your time of sorrow for a very dear friend.
**
Thinking about your blog;
Coast Guards; lifesavers; of people, ships, boats lost at sea;
and of families waiting onshore.
Lines from a poem by Robert Frost
“Neither Out Far Nor in Deep” (c) 1936 ( in “Poems of the Sea” anthology; ed JD McClatchy; 2001).
“// And the people looking at the sea
// They cannot look out far
They cannot look deep in.
But when was that ever a bar
To any watch they keep?”
Stay safe. Keep well.
Saifun
Thank you, Saiffun, and I appreciate the recited words of Robert Frost, too.
Sorry you’ve lost another friend, Charli, but what a lovely tribute. I’ve tagged my 99-word story on to the end of a post from earlier this month – so I hope no-one gets confused if they’re kind enough to come and visit. It’s a historical flash fiction based on the heroism of Grace Darling – and I’m wondering if you’ll get more than one of those from the UK, but mine has a photograph (taken by me) from a beach very close to where she set out with her father to rescue the survivors of a shipwreck.
https://annegoodwin.weebly.com/annecdotal/the-therapy-journey-and-narrative-structure
It’s been a sad month for our veteran group of friends. I think Barb would have appreciated a historical fiction, Anne. You wrote it well, too, with a feel for the place and era, and the revelation of the loss.
Thanks, Charli. Actually, I’m rather ashamed to admit that, although I know the area well, I’ve never been inside the small museum in her former home.
Those little museums are easy to overlook, yet can hold a wealth of history.
I know exactly where it is. Just that when I go up there I want to be outdoors. The coastline there is beautiful and it’s too cold to sunbathe so never crowded.
What a name for this hero, Grace Darling. I didn’t get confused and it was worth the trip. Now I’m thinking I want to know that mother’s story. It must be something for the therapists when some in a family don’t survive the sinking and others do.
Yes, tragic. People can suffer survivor guilt when the casualties are strangers, so sad when to lose your children that way. (Great material for writers as well as keeping therapists in business!)
[…] Carrot Ranch Prompt (10/30/2020): In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about life savers on any body of water. It can be a formal Coast Guard, historical or contemporary. It could be an individual who unexpectedly takes on the role. Go where the prompt leads! […]
Cuz you know who you gotta count on:
Oreos and Milk Save the Day!
The boat tosses and turns, water crashing over its bow, threatening to tip the tiny crew into the roiling waters.
“I can’t hold our course, Captain!”
“Look alive, Fishlegs! The deadly virus cure’s gotta get to Littleton before sunrise.”
[Continue]
It is a wonder just what children understand – if you let them.
Start ’em young!
I’m so sorry to hear of the loss of your friend, Charli. She sounded such a wonderful lady who touched on the lives of many. And although Precious never went with Brab, I’m sure she’s pleased that her bear is being looked after by somebody in the family.
She was, Hugh! Thank you for your kind words.
[…] I read Charli’s 99 word prompt this week, I immediately remembered the tragic events at Blackrock Island in the very early hours of March […]
As soon as I see or hear the words, Coast Guards and lifesavers, I immediately remember the tragic accident at Blackrock Island in the very early hours of March 14th 2017. The nation mourned!
https://tasheengawriteshere.wordpress.com/2020/11/02/rescue-116-in-99words/
Rescue 116
Irish Coast Guard helicopter
Called into the night
Black ocean swells
Rocky terrain in sight
Find Blacksod Bay
Refuel at the lighthouse
Where the keeper awaits
No mayday distress
Black box tells
Of that early misty morn
Winchman yelled ‘come right’
Duffy said ‘we’re gone’
Didn’t make it to the lighthouse
Hit Blackrock instead
Two were lost at sea
Two were found…now dead
Ciarán Smith
Father of three
Paul Ormsby
Lived for family
Captain Dara Fitzpatrick
Mother sister friend
Captain Mark Duffy
All heroes till the end
The nation mourned
We’ll never forget
Rescue 116
Saviours we never met
Oh, wow, not that long ago, Gloria! Rescue 116. You filled the story with such action and emotion, I can feel the community’s rally and loss. You should share this with a regional publication. I’m sure it would resonate with your community.
Thank you Charli. Yes quite a recent accident. I feel particularly sad for the families of the two men who were never found. Closure is very important, I think.
Bard was precious Charli, just little her little bear. It takes a special kind of person to be able to sit with the pain of others. Pure selfless. I think our saviours of the sea face such danger and unforeseen circumstances, and not always a happy ending. However, the happy endings are most likely what drives them on in their work. Bless them all!
We all strive for those happy endings, don’t we? Yet often we find the beauty of life in the tragic events. Thank you.
[…] for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join […]
Yikes, Hugh!
I’m sorry to hear this, Charli. <3 Sounds like a lovely goodbye you all had (with Precious, of course).
It reminded me that veterans are accustomed to saying goodbye. There is a camaraderie around the loss and that is enough. Thank you.
[…] to Carrot Ranch October 30 Flash Fiction Challenge where Charli Mills offers the theme of “life savers on any body of […]
Thanks, Frank!
Precious…
Yes. <3
I’m feeling a bit creatively exhausted from the 13 Days of Samhain challenge I did. I can’t think of any ideas for this prompt at the moment. I hoped reading other people’s responses might help but my mind is still blank… I think I’ve got a day or so.
Oh, what was that challenge, Joanne? Astrological Samhain continues through the middle of November. May it refresh your creative stores!
Sometimes it is hard to continue serial stories too. And that with the rodeo challenges… Just keep writing something even if it is gibberish. Because some times even if it doesn’t make sense to you it will help keep the ink flowing 🙂
[…] by Charli’s prompt to write about life savers on any body of water, in remembrance of her good friend, Barb […]
Thanks, Chel.
[…] October 30: Flash Fiction Challenge […]
Thanks, Anita!
[…] week’s #carrotranch prompt […]
Hi Charli,
I’m sorry about your loss of Barb. We never have our loved ones long enough. What a gift she left behind for others to enjoy and learn from. October is over, I hope that means your workload is either finished or lessened. It was a wild month of fun at the ranch. I will admit I don’t think fairy tales are for me…My story wasn’t complete in 99 words so my first two-parter follows. ..
Muddy Water Memories
The band was packing their instruments when a young man approached Mac. He stuck an old photo of two men, one supporting the other, in a muddy rice paddy apparently in Vietnam in front of him. “I’m wondering if that’s you on the left?”
Mac stared at the photo…”Billy Metott.”
“My grandfather. He says you saved his life that day. I wanted to tell you he’s doin’ well and say thank you.”
“How did you find me?”
“I’m attending college near here. He saw the bar’s name when he passed by and thought it must be you.”
“I’ll be.”
(Part two)
Mac handed the picture back, wiped the tears from his eyes, and finally looked at the young man. “The truth about that day is nobody lived without the help of a buddy. Why didn’t Billy stop in?”
“Fear he was wrong. Memories.”
“That I understand. Your name?”
“Colm, after my father.”
When the band members heard the name, their curiosity peaked. They heard Mac say, “Sorry about the name. I’d like to get together with your grandfather. Maybe we can save each other from some future bad dreams.”
“He’ll agree to that. I’ll let him know.”
“Thank you, Colm.”
I love that you’re breaking the rules, doing a double.
I also enjoy witnessing this story and characters deepen and develop.
Thanks Dede. I’m lucky I have my Veterans writing group to bounce story ideas around with.
Hi Sue,
No, we don’t get our loved ones long enough. But if we are fortunate to build a community to share the burden with, just as o many of your veteran stories reflect, we get to hold onto love. Thanks for this two-parter. It’s got a lot of hope and healing between the lines.
I’d say a fine double indeed. I’ve done that when I can’t fit everything in just 99 words. Two or three 99 word segments… I didn’t see anything in the rules saying we can’t…
[…] “In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about lifesavers on any body of water.”– prompt used for this CW piece.[Source: CarrotRanch] […]