Millions of soldiers fight valiantly for their country, and millions die doing so. I pray for those who were the victims of so-called friendly fire. It’s not better or worse than any other war death, but it is its own special hell. The letter below, surrounded by paper poppies, is a letter my grandmother copied about her 20-year-old son’s death in World War II. Carefully crafted by the captain, the words do not mention how my uncle died.
That was left to me to find out. The facts were never shared with my family, thus their mantra until the day they died, was simple, “He was killed in the Philippines.” That statement always begged for more as far as I was concerned. Battle? Skirmish? Ambush? But no, it was to be none of that. Had my family known how their soldier died in 1945, I doubt they would have said anything differently.
So with only a couple of cousins left with which to share the story, I searched 70-year-old records and found out what happened to Pvt. James Curtis Morrow. My short story, Star-Crossed Soldier is available on Amazon. (First published in 2012.)
So, what do I do if I don’t have a Kindle or tablet or pad?
Hope you received by now. Thanks.
Hey Vivian….you are doing a remarkable job. You live in Dallas? We are in N. Richland Hills, TX. 7800 Mockingbird Lane, #61 (La Casita Mobile Home Park), 76180. 817-428-5288. Call, come see us, meet somewhere? George
Vivian:
Star-Crossed Soldier is a remarkable story. Use your pitch to send to an agent. Also, I think D magazine, Southwest, or T. Monthly would be a good bet. Your story is perfectly balanced, and yet, also poignant and dramatic. (Though you shared it with our writing group, I think of it all the time. It stays with the reader!) The conference at Texas Writers League has a slew of agents. I’d pitch it to them this summer!