Saulius by Pedro

[Chris James]

What an adorable collection of characters this story presents. Well done, Pedro.

There is nothing complex in the plot of this story but it delights the reader with its simplicity. I always enjoy a story based upon a single element and in this case my mind paints the image of a small rustic bridge where much of the action takes place. Pedro gives us small village life peopled with interesting characters, some of them animals.

I enjoyed all that local color revealed through the language in the dialogue, but as for the action sequences I think the cows stole the scene. Now I have said enough and everyone should go read this story...and here is a convenient link:

http://www.awesomedude.com/pedro/saulius/saulius.htm

[Merkin]

A delightful tale, with nearly everyone qualifying as hero; I would have to name Fly as my choice at the expense of an immediate affection for Duke. Save for the Epilogue I could well see this as the pilot program for one of those delicious public television series featuring cosy English village life.

[Rutabaga]

Very nicely done.

R

[Nigel Gordon]

A delightful story delightfully told.

[Pedro]

Thank you for your appreciation of my efforts.

Save for the Epilogue I could well see this as the pilot program for one of those delicious public television series featuring cosy English village life.

- I would be worried it might turn out to be a cross between 'Midsomer Murders' and 'Daffyd, the only gay in the village' from 'Little Britain'.

However your comment put me in mind of a series of , I think, four amusing stories where the gay narrator is always being 'organised' by Mrs Bossy. One story was an Art exhibition, one an archeological dig, one where Pan comes to the village and makes everyone submit to his desires. I forget what the fourth was. I have also forgotten where I saw the stories or who the author was, but I will sleep on't and hopefully remember.

[Lugnutz]

I won't say anything until I read it again. Need more time to absorb it. An English setting is nice.

[Pedro]

Found it: The Elcombe Stories by Michael Duggan on CRVboy. Link to the Art Show:-

Http://www.crvboy.org/stories/michaelduggan/es/t01.html

[DesDownunder]

I finished reading this delightful story when this tune popped into my head. Not really anything to do with the story, but I think it makes a nice background.

[Resurgam]

Thank you - loved the story - bittersweet ending seems a little harsh on Saulius' otherwise personable character perhaps? Hmm - I didn't know Lithuania (and the other Baltic States as well) had such a problem with culturally entrenched homophobia Re: Saulius' comment "You have to understand, Lithuania is a Catholic country, gays aren't supposed to exist. Homophobia is normal."

Trying to put a positive spin on this I suppose Lithuanian society hasn't been out of the Soviet/Russian deep freeze very long and they only acceded to the EU in May 2004 so perhaps one shouldn't be hyper critical? Other very Catholic countries have made surprisingly radical changes in short timescales e.g. Ireland. Interesting Wikipedia article "LGBT Rights in Lithuania" and a lot more online especially regarding the controversial 2009 "Protection of Minors" law which does sound an appallingly retrograde step - see Huffington Post and much else.

PS. My curiosity about the very particular bridge descibed and pictured as "a steel through truss to bridge the gap." was sated by Wikipedia's comprehensive article on Truss bridges! It would seem that even the classic US "Covered bridges" (the eponymous Bridges of Madison County) are actually "wooden through truss bridges" in engineering terms. Learn something new every day!

[Cole Parker]

What a wonderful short story! The writing is so confident, so flowing and rich, the mark of someone very comfortable with pen in hand and idea in head. Thoroughly professional, and it shows in the fact an entirely happy ending was not forced -- just a realistic one.

Thanks for this.

C

[Pedro]

Thank you all for your effusive comments.

Des- I enjoyed the video. If I remember correctly, the song was originally written for the kind of garden I had in mind. However there must have been a jail break at the local zoo when they made the video - some of the fauna would be exotic even in your neck of the woods never mind England.

Resurgam - The ending was not intended as a reflection on Saulius character, just a recognition that he would need to head off to make his own way in the world.

- Thank you for posting the link about LGBT in Lithuania which provides a level of corroboration for my premise. I found the info I needed from a 'Google' search, but I was concerned that I might have got it wrong. I have no personal experience of Lithuanian society, and 'a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing'. FYI, Kalvis (Smith) does not appear to,be a common name. There was only one in the Vilnius phone book when I thought I had better check it existed at all.

- thank you also for the covered bridge link. We do indeed learn something new every day. I had always wondered why they were covered, now I know it is to protect the structure not the users. Although there was another reason that I specified a through truss bridge, I did think that this type would appeal to a fashion photo-shoot as it would allow the models more choice of bits to lean on or hang from than most other types.