Fic for Sentinel Thursday

[mab_browne]

Slightly late for the prompt but there's an old saw about that sort of thing...

I wrote this for the 'remembrance' challenge onsentinel_thurs. Gen, 1700 words approximately. I wrote this around a Veterans Day theme and as a foreigner no doubt I've got things wrong, so point them out gently and I'll see what I can do.

Comments

[admiralandrea]

Really nice. I liked this, very Jim!

[mab_browne]

Thanks. I always remember how Jim stays on the outskirts of Jack's funeral in Deep Water, and this came out of it, I think. :-)

[knitty_woman]

What a nice tradition. There are definitely mixed emotions here among veterans on Veterans Day. The commemorations have gotten smaller and less well attended. The WWII veterans, who are now quite elderly, bolstered the tradition, and as they have aged (and as America's wars have grown more complicated), it has become less acknowledged. How fitting that Jim would have wanted a more private ritual.

(just a small editing note: I think Jim would have used the word "glasses" rather than "tumblers".)

[mab_browne]

Jim's a private guy, I think. Glad this worked for you, and thanks for the USA speak advice. :-)

[aerianya]

Wonderful story.
My Dad was a WWII vet who pretty much ignored Veteran's Day, too much trauma I guess.
So we'd go fishing.

[mab_browne]

There's a well-known song in this part of the world called "And the band played Waltzing Matilda". I think The Pogues covered it as well, which sums up some of my personal background to Jim's characterisation here. Glad you liked. :-)

[redgirl72928]

I liked this look at Jim and the military very much. I was especially touched that while he has nothing but disdain for the politics and machinations of the service, he has love and affection and honor for those men with whom he served.

Thank you for sharing!

[mab_browne]

You're welcome. :-) That characterisation of Jim seemed to fit what we saw in the series, somehow.

[snycock]

Very nice story! This seems perfectly in line with Jim, to me; he's always seemed like someone who values substance over style, and so a personal gesture rather than a public one makes complete sense.

[mab_browne]

Thanks. I felt a bit nervous tackling this but people generally seem to like it so that's good. :-)