Thanks, Denise! I believe you called it "sad but hopeful" in one of your comments. Not an easy balance to strike.
From Deb's comments, I got the impression that it left her speechless, in a good way.
Normandie, said that she could see the story in her head.
Nans, described the story as being sensitivly written.
Claire expressed the hope she could do a challenge as well as this. (You can, remember, I read
Error of Judgement.)
Amelia indicated that the story captured the moments that the show missed.
I'm going from the top of my head here, I don't think I missed anyone. My point is, based on the comments, this story seemed to have a powerful impact on everyone who read it. When I read the piece again last week, I had to ask myself, "I wrote this? How the hell did that happen?" See, even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.

It must be all the kindly advice and encouragement from my friends on the guild, yeah, that's the ticket!
All kidding aside, I could not have written a story like this without the benefit of a supportive writer's group. You guys are the best!