All Comments on 'Mail Call'

Wow! What a wonderful story with great characters. It really spoke to me. My parents meet and married just after the war. I also had the opportunity to visit The Punchbowl and the Arizona Memorial. Thanks for your story.

5

Fabulous!

I have read at least two other stories on this site, where the narrative starts with a girl writing to a soldier at war, and the subsequent lifelong love. This story transcends anything else in that genre. You have captured the essence of what it means to a serving member to have someone at home that they can rely on. And, while he didn't know that she was blind, their long-distance love grew to the point where it didn't really matter, even if he did have some soon-dismissed misgivings at first.

Please keep writing; since your "rebirth" you haven't missed.

That really was a very good story.Thank you very much!!

done it again. another great story

What a wonderfully done story. Probably the best romance story I have read on this site.

You are one of a short list of authors that I drop everything to read and this story is, if possible, a cut above your rest. Both sides of my family served in WW2, all in the Pacific in the Navy and Marines. Thank you for this beautiful story.

What a wonderful story. A real tear jerker. Truly worthy of 5 stars!

I’ve come to really appreciate your stories. You write so well with likable, interesting, believable characters and vivid settings that bring me right in. Thank you for your careful editing, too.

I’m not a military man, but I’ve been to the Punchbowl and it was a powerful experience in a beautiful place. You’ve captured that wonderfully, and brought those feelings right back.

As always, thank you for writing and thank you for sharing your work.

Great story but you made some mistakes:

Firstly I think you're math is off: she became 17 in September 1942 and by February 1945 (the timing of the battle of Iwo Jima) she's still only 18? That's an error...

Secondly: you have the main character fight both at Iwo Jima and at Okinawa. This cannot be. The marine units who fought at Iwo Jima (4th and 5th Marine Division and 3rd Division as reserve) did not fight at Okinawa. The Marine divisions who fought at Okinawa were the 1st, 2nd and 6th Marine Divisions. As the MC fought at Guadalcanal (that would have been in the 1st Marine Division) you should have skipped the Iwo part and substituted it for another bloody battle were the 1st Marines fought (for instance Peleliu (Sep-Nov 1944) and after recovering from his would he could still go fight at Okinawa. It would also have been a closer fix for her age which you got wrong (see above).

Wow! Just, WOW!

Thank you.

Five stars. Easy.

The story was a little sappy, but why not. It's certainly a worthwhile subject and more should be said about the ordinary people who lived and fought for their country and who supported the fighters at home. We still have those people, but they appear to be much more complicated because our world is more complicated, but actually they're all still people with the same needs and desires. Too often we read and write about people that seem to be different and special in some way and I do enjoy those, but we must never forget that average people do exist and they are just that, average and we should appreciate what they do for our society. 5* for an excellent teaching effort.

Beautiful story easily 5 stars ! Thank you for writing so much wonderful stories for us !

What a wonderful story. Thank you.

What a wonderful story! Thank you.

Beautiful story.

I wish there was a way to give you more stars for this lovely story and capture life during this time frame. I will copy this one and put into my file - of truly excellent and heart warming stories. Thanks so very much.

While I have never visited Pearl, I have visited Arlington and the memorials around Washington DC. Nothing is more moving than imagining those men and women doing exactly what was expected of them. Negative optimism’s of WW2, Korea, Vietnam and a crap load of middle eastern conflicts doesn’t lessen their sacrifice. Wonderful story - just well done.

sempre fi

It is wonderful to find a rose amongst the wreckage! It is a shame that I can't give this story the kind of rating it truly deserves (5++++). The characters and situations are very believable based on my growing up as a "baby boom" child, and having a blind dorm mate in university. The story is well written and edited. Leave out the sex and it would make a very good short story to be used in an English or History class. I have been to the Arizona Memorial but did not get to the Punchbowl. To ANYONE traveling to Hawaii make Honolulu your first stop. Take a few days to visit the Arizona Memorial, USS Missouri, Punchbowl and the USS Utah Memorial. You will be glad you did. Then go on to your beach resort. Thank you for a wonderful story!

Rich characterizations, not one unlikable person in the whole thing. This was nothing short of a true delight. I see Ronde has over a 100 works on this site, I'll take a look but I can't imagine any of them could be this warm and uplifting.

A very touching story. Well done. I enjoyed it very much.

Great story as always. You have become my favorite author.

Outstanding.

Awesome!

Pretty much a perfect story. Brilliantly done. Thank you

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Lovely story. Five stars all the way!

Thank you for this moving tribute, superbly done!

Absolutely impressive. Thank you

Nicely told! Having Valerie be blind instead of having Mack come back blind was an inspired plot choice. This was old fashioned romance storytelling at its best! Many thanks! 5 stars.

Well done. I was in Vietnam with no one until a letter arrived. The difference between life and and not coming back.

Loved the story. You make characters with whom I easily relate. I had Uncles who were in WWII and who never spoke about it. On of them was on 3 raids on the Romanian Ploiești Oil fields. Each time he lost all his squadron members. His children found his DFC in a box in the attic. His other brother fought through Monte Cassino. Like his older brother, the kids found the Bronze Star and other awards in a box in the attic. The first brother came back and never flew on an airplane again until his younger brother (the second) died. He flew from the East Coast to California for the funeral. He was 98, the second brother was 93.

A very nice story but a bit naive and goody-goody. Also, you whizzed through time awfully fast without really good transitions.

The Marines went into Guadalcanal solely to stop the Japanese from completing their airstrip and further stopping the Japanese from expanding southward. Rabul became the target only after the Marines were in Guadalcanal. It was such a tough nut to crack, eventually Rabul was isolated and passed by. Any Marine who survived Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima both would be drastically changed from his former self and would be suffering from a variety of ailments including malaria, malnutrition, other tropical diseases, and they would be suffering mental problems from what they saw and did. You kind of brushed through Iwo and made Okinawa sound like a very short picnic - that was not the case.

I doubt after the Marine's combat experience he would be the same nice guy when he arrived in Louisville. Also I doubt they lived happily ever after as indicated. Every family has serious problems from time to time. I speak from experience of a combat veteran (Viet Nam 101st Airborne Div) and a 52 year marriage raising and education two children. Bottom line, nice story but way too light and more of a fantasy type story than reality.

A very beautiful and touching Love story of two souls that that became one.

We are so touched with their romance and the love in their hearts.

Thank you for your words and reminding us what could be and should be!

SJW

Your military stories are superb. Very touching. You are an excellent writer. Thank you.

Very, very, well written story. I'm not sure what else you might have added, but it was so good I found myself wishing it were longer, somehow. But, it's pretty close to perfect as is. Thank you for writing it.

So much packed into so few, but perfect, words. Very well done.

Took me a bit to find my “5” key through the tears. One of your best stories. 5.0*

Exceptional Ronde, 5*s and eternal thanks

Words would only pail to the story you wrote and to the people that served in WW II. I served in Viet Nam and know what a person that served in war feel and how a man learns to love with his heart, regardless of what others think or do. Great story and well told. Thank You for that

Geez, Ronde, why don't you just rip my heart out??? No fooling, I was in tears all the way through this wonderful story! One of your best, and one of the very best stories on the whole site!

Stunning 5* more if possible

Very touching story about a Marine who lived because of Valerie writing him, and finding reasons to stay alive because of her. You constructed a believable and lovely fictional history between them after the war. Wonderful touch to conclude them finding Valerie's father at Punchbowl.

The poster named "Belgium" was indeed very correct about the Marine divisions that fought at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and that's a significant error--and he even provided a substitution to fix the timing. Otherwise, I can't find fault with the story past that. 4

As a Marine, please let me say very nice, a great story, well told.

Dang hay fever - I'm all sniffling and tearing up.

5 stars is no where near enough.

I try and read every story when there's a soldier or vet in it.

This one had me in tears a couple of times. Very well done!

A wonderful story! I had tears in my eyes for most of it. 5*

This was one of your best, and that is saying something. Thanks

A beautifully moving story! Love Mack's hairy chest that grazes Valerie's nipples! They are so perfect together This is a real love that develops between them -- she is a good wife, lover, and mother, and he is a great man, husband, and father! Thanks for a beautiful story!

Lovely story of strangers, who fell in love.

ALWAYS A GOOD TALE...CINCO ESTRELLAS!

What a touching, simple love story. And a tribute to my father's generation. They delivered our country from tyranny at a terrible cost. "The greatest generation". Mack and Valerie's story is their story.

Wonderful story, thank you, and Semper Fi from this old Marine.

1 of ur best made me cry several times mark ofn emotional awesome story. Thank u for ur hard work n time it was enjoyed n appteciated

It had me tearing up throughout. 5.

Yep, a real tear-jerker. Good story, very well told. Thank you very much. There's nothing wrong with sentimentality, when it's not forced and not stupid.

Great storytelling. America really should redress the oversight when she dedicated it's monument to her heroes. Many of her daughters made the ultimate sacrifice along with her sons.

Reread. What a sweet story. My wife’s uncle’s name is on that wall. Thank you for bringing these characters to life.

It was written cinematically. It had a romantic nostalgic feel to it like a Dana Andrew's movie or like "Baby Blue Marine"... Very well done. Classic.

good story. Just thought about how hard it was for blind people, or disabled in those years compared to today. We, as a nation have made great progress to allow "everyone" to have a better life.

That was very well done. I don’t hand out 5’s readily but this is that good. Yes, it is sentimental, yes, it might seem overly heroic, but it reflects the values of a generation that had values. I am Canadian, not American, and a generation removed from those who fought that war, but I have an uncle buried in France, whose grave I have also visited, and fortunately four others who came home. This story, for me, was about overcoming adversity, but also just about the value of love and fidelity. Thank you.

The greatest generation! When the world went off the rails, men like Sergeant Mack volunteered and fought for our freedom. Women like Valerie and her mother helped on the home front. Sorry to say that there aren't many of them left. Hoo Rah! Great story--I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Wonderful story. Too bad I was reading it in the rain and my eyes had trouble reading.

So very good. Thank you

Nice.Just...nice. Well done

Nice is all that needs to said and with a few tears. I was in the Army, joined in '64 and got out in January of '67 as they were building for Nam. I was fortunate, I spent 2 years in Europe never getting close to battle. Driving around France I was still crossing bridges Patton had put up, amazing. As I say I was very fortunate and been throughout my life of 80 years.

Don't ever forget all the servicemen and women that that died many of them needlessly. We killed 50 thousand men in Vietnam for what? I bought a shirt at Costco, looked at tag for washing instructions, you know what it said? Made in Vietnam. I'll be taking it back. Great story with a happy ending for some good people. It's real travesty the way many of our troops were treated coming home from Nam, most of them had no choice and were drafted. 5 stars

Excellent

You write beautifully.

Awesome AGAIN!! 5+++ Stars... loving each of your stories!!

Thank you for this.

Another heartwarming fantastic story

Thank you for a very good story of both loss and triumph . As well as a tribute to the human spirit .

My grandmother was blind in both eyes at age 64 from two botched cataract operations and after her husband died , she took care of her 8-room house for 15 years with only help from my mother once a week. She cooked and cleaned. I was amazed that she did all that without any sight.

Earle

What an amazingly wonderful story, reminding us how much we owe the Greatest Generation.

Authentic to a "T". A short story that sums up the U.S.A. , It's ethos during and after W.W.ll.

Beaurifully crafted. Simply told. Momentarily, I was there.

One literal noted: Page 3, Para 7. Mr Apostrophe reared his ugly head. You used thr possessive,

"mother's, instead of the plural, "mothers".

Great story

For f***s sake, Peapod41, STFU! You get all these wonderful stories for nothing yet you witter away nit-picking. If you are so damned clever put your work on display so everyone can take the piss out of your mistakes. Judging from the number of errors you make in a three-line comment a three page story would result in a six page comment. Love the way you spell what I assume should be "the", a word normally learnt in kindergarten.

Peapod41 since you know so much about how to write a story, please show us. You have none posted so we cannot see how it is done.

I love the story. It was great. As for Peapod41 jump in a lake and don't come up. AAAAAA++++++

Awesome 5⭐️ story,, well done

Suddenly got dusty after reading this. My sight is blurry. I'm having some trouble focusing to see the words.

Thanks, ronde.