This installment of Julie’s Story, which focuses on our wedding and the discovery of Julie’s breast cancer, takes the form of Vows, a short story written by Julie.
This decision was not made without trepidation.
First, Julie wrote Vows to be read as fiction, not as a memoir. Although it is no challenge to identify the individuals and events that are the basis for the story, some details have been changed in the service of literary mechanics. My recall of a few facts, primarily those of the who said what when variety varies from Julie’s story, but, again, most of the historical particulars in Vows are true to the facts, and it is possible that some or all of the discrepancies are the result of faults in my memory, whether caused by psychological reasons or just the passage of time.
My principal conflict about the Vows episode, as will be evident on reading the story, is that my perspective differs significantly from Julie’s, and I certainly would not have written a description of the period in which the wedding took place as she wrote Vows.1 My Vows doppelganger does not come off unsullied. (For more about my service as a model for flawed characters in Julie’s writing, see Married To An Author In Search Of A Character,)
On the other hand, it does seem that offering Julie’s point of view, on this rare occasion when it is available, makes sense, and her story is, I admit, more moving than my bloguscript version would be.
And there have been instances in which Julie was right.
OK, there have been instances in which Julie was right – and I was wrong.
To download a PDF version of Vows by Julie Showalter, click on VOWS-JS
Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter was the fiercely intelligent, sexy, and loving woman with whom I had a outrageously wonderful marriage that ended with her death in late 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a brilliant scholar, the mother of our two sons, and a prize-winning author. Many posts on this blog are about her and still others consist of her writings. Julie’s Story is the account of our unlikely romance, Information can be found at Julie Showalter FAQ.
Julie’s Story
- Next Installment: 15. “Michael Reese Medical Center Is Not What I Had In Mind For A Honeymoon Destination”
- Previous Installment: 13. The White – Or At Least Very Pale – Chapter
- First Installment Of Julie’s Story: 1. This Is How A Love Story Began
Note: Originally posted Jun 7, 2006 at 1HeckOfAGuy.com, a predecessor of AllanShowalter.com
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- This will not be a case of Dueling Stories. Vows will be the only complete account I post of our wedding. [↩]