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Sergeant John Blake stood among the weary victors at Chancellorsville.
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The victory felt hollow.
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Whispers of a friendly fire incident involving Stonewall Jackson
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had turned into a grim reality.
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Jackson, the man who had inspired John at Bull Run and bolstered his
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spirit at Antietam, lay wounded.
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The camp was shrouded in a heavy silence.
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A stark contrast to the usual celebratory cheers that followed a victory.
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Days bled into each other, filled with a tense anticipation that gnawed at John.
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He, along with many others, found himself drawn towards the makeshift hospital,
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a constant vigil kept for any news.
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Rumors swirled, some hopeful, others grim.
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John remembered the unwavering figure of Jackson at Antietam,
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his voice a beacon in the storm.
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Now that beacon flickered weakly.
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One day, the news arrived.
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Carried on the hushed tones of a medical officer.
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Amputation.
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John's gut clenched.
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Stonewall Jackson, the man seemingly impervious to bullets, had lost an arm.
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It felt like a betrayal of their collective faith.
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A symbol of their own vulnerability.
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John pictured Jackson, the man who embodied Confederate resilience, and
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wondered how he would weather this storm.
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Days later, another blow.
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Pneumonia.
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John felt a cold dread settle in his stomach.
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The whispers grew louder, filled with a morbid certainty.
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Finally, the news came crashing down.
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Stonewall Jackson was dead.
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John stood numb, the cheers of victory from just a week ago
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echoing hollowly in his memory.
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The camp was plunged into a deep morning.
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John watched as the once vibrant general was laid to rest.
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A sense of emptiness gnawing at him.
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He had lost more than a leader, he had lost a symbol.
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A man who embodied the spirit of the Confederacy.
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As the army prepared to move on, John found himself
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lingering by Jackson's grave.
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He looked at the fresh mound of earth.
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A stark reminder of their shared mortality.
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Stonewall Jackson was gone, but his legacy remained.
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A legacy etched, not just in victories, but in his unwavering spirit.
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John straightened his shoulders, a newfound resolve hardening in his eyes.
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They would fight on for Jackson, and for themselves.
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But a question lingered in the back of his mind.
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Could the Confederacy, without its Stonewall, stand against the
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relentless tide of the Union?
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What you just heard is our last teaser for our upcoming episode
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about our visit to the Lexington gravesite of Stonewall Jackson.
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Make sure you follow us on your podcast player of choice so you don't miss it.
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Jen and I just finished moving from Virginia to Tennessee and all that
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activity is finally catching up with us.
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So I wanted to let our listeners know we will be on a short break,
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no more than a couple weeks.
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As we get settled in, unpack the myriad of boxes around our house
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and figure out the lay of the land in the greater Memphis area.
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And until then, we're going to ask one thing of our regular listeners.
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There's an email link in the show notes that we want you to click.
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So you can write to us, let us know your favorite episode of talk with history.
Scott:
And why just pick the very first episode that pops in your mind.
Scott:
It doesn't matter what the reason we will collect those inputs and mention
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them when we come back from break.
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This is a great way for us to hear about what is working and why you are
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listeners like a particular episode.
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Don't be afraid to be as honest as possible.
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We really do love hearing from you, and this is a great way for
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us to get your valuable feedback.
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Click that one link in the show notes.
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It should open an email to us.
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Write as short or as long a note as you like.
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It would mean a lot to us.
Scott:
Thank you, as always, for your support.
Scott:
We'll talk to you soon.
