Forever December

[Camy]

I first read Forever December ages ago on Dabeagle.com soon after I got online. It's a beautifully written and poignant tale that made me cry. Perhaps it was just a time and place, but if affected me deeply. Enough of the schmaltz.

Go and read it!

There is also an audio version adapted from Dabeagle's original by Darker Projects in 2006. Check it out HERE (episode 12). Or download the mp3 HERE (24:37 25Mb)

[dude]

Reading Forever December elicited the same response in me as well.

A great story, no matter when you read it. Or LISTEN to it!

[Gee Whillickers]

Yup, me too.

Just read this last night, and it had the same effect. Touching and wonderfully written.

Thanks for the great story.

[Bruin Fisher]

Like Camy, I read this a long time ago, but re-read it just now and enjoyed it just as much as the first time. It's a great story, a very satisfying read.

[Cole Parker]

Fine, fine writing. It's the sort of story that's easy to read, and enjoy, more than once.

C

[colinian]

This is a very sweet story with two people who have lost something important in their lives then find each other. It's a perfect story for Christmas, pointing out that this is the season for giving and that sometimes the best gift doesn't come wrapped in colorful paper.

Colin

[Merkin]

I, too, discovered this lovely, heartrending tale long ago. This is not my favorite holiday season, and 'Forever December' has become one of those stories I select to read every year to remind me that there can be an essential goodness available to mankind.

James

[Guest Dabeagle]

I'm glad this was a pleasant re-read for so many of you. I get messages every year about this story, many from folks like you who read it once a year. It's a nice little story, I enjoy it, and it seemed like a nice time of year to give it to Mike and folks who might like a little holiday cheer.

Happy Holidays folks.

[Lugnutz]

Always a great read, been thru it many times. The end still chokes me up.

EDIT: Just read it again. Same end results.

[The Pecman]

Very unusual -- a Christmas ghost story! I agree, very moving.

[Altimexis]

It's one of my favorites, too. I've read it several times and it always brings tears to my eyes. Glad to see it here.

[Lugnutz]

Just read this again. It won't be topped.

[DesDownunder]

Beautiful story. How could anyone not be moved by this intricate tale of loss, and found; love and empathy?

A story that is a gift to us all.

[Camy]

This should be labelled NSFW (not safe for work) unless you have colleagues who don't mind a grown man tearing up and howling.

Part of what makes this story so special for me is its title. Beautifully poignant and rememberable though the story is, its title, 'Forever December', seems to add some sort of magical pixie dust to it... or, perhaps I'm just odd.

[Guest Dabeagle]

A little bit of trivia about this story and my writing in general. Music frequently is represented in my work, either as inspiration or something far more intrinsic to the telling of the story. For instance, in 'Long Day' (which is now painful to read) my main character can only speak in song lyrics due to a condition called Aphasia. (As a side note, I split my sides laughing at an episode of Glee when one of the opposition teams had a girl named Aphasia.) Many of my musical interests were reflected directly in the main characters lyrical choices including the story title, taken from a Matchbox 20 song of the same name.

Forever December was written about the same time frame as Long Day and, at the time, my interest in MB20 was at its peak. I discovered that their frontman, Rob Thomas, had been in a previous band (along with almost everyone in MB20) called Tabitha's Secret. I bought the album and listened to the sounds of songs that later, as MB20 songs, became hits. There was also several songs that would never be well recieved but I did like one song, called Forever December. The rest of the story came from a horror movie idea of a possessed home that manifested as the dead son of the new owners.

Odd how it ended up, taking that into account.

[The Pecman]

A little bit of trivia about this story and my writing in general. Music frequently is represented in my work, either as inspiration or something far more intrinsic to the telling of the story. For instance, in 'Long Day' (which is now painful to read) my main character can only speak in song lyrics due to a condition called Aphasia.

Yeah, I had heard about aphasia and had a character in one of my novels get into a car wreck, and he wound up having some mild brain damage, leading to aphasia. Very tragic condition.

One of my closest friends had what we thought was a minor heart attack awhile back. He recovered fine from the heart problem, but unfortunately his brain lost oxygen for about 6-7 minutes, and now about 90% of his memories are gone. He's basically now childlike and out of it and requires constant care. It's awful -- basically as if he's dead, and some alien took over his body. It's terrible when something like this happens, especially to people who are in the prime of life and seem perfectly healthy.