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Sunday Story (um...missing scene?)

  • Jan. 18th, 2007 at 8:49 PM
dawn
This is short.  And, like many other's, it was written as a form of catharsis in reaction to the episode "Sunday".

Title: To Immortality
Author: Tipper
Disclaimer: Stargate: Atlantis and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story was created for entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author(s), not me. Thank you to the amazing writers, producers, actors, crew and directors who bring these shows to life.
Rating: Gen/T – vignette
Status: Complete.
Characters:  Um...whomever you think this is speaking.

A/N: I know Weir delivered Carson's Eulogy, and then they walked through the wormhole, but it wasn't enough for me.  So I imagined another eulogy, one delivered...by someone else.
___________________________________________________

He walked up next to the casket, eyes wet but not shedding any tears.  He rested a hand gently atop the flag, fingers tracing the thick material, and for a moment, he just stood still.  Alone with his friend one last time.  Then he turned, eyes lifting to capture all the people who stood in the Gateroom, waiting for him to speak, for him to finish what Elizabeth began.

This is Carson's Eulogy.
___________________________________________________

And when, in the grand scheme of things, we die, we do always hope to go out with a bang. Something amazing, something mind blowing, something lasting, like the chord dying out in the Cathedral after the last note has been sung.
 
Carson died a hero. He died saving a life, and no one is surprised by that. I would expect nothing less.
 
But, thing is, I'm not sure if I can appreciate Carson's death the way I could appreciate his life. Elizabeth said that his work lives on in those that he saved, and, therefore, that he lives on. And, to a certain extent, that's true. But, and here's the thing...Carson was more than just a doctor. He was more than just a brilliant scientist.
 
He was Carson.
 
He was the idealist of Atlantis -- the kindest soul, the softest touch, the bleeding heart liberal, the best friend and the true dreamer. I'm not sure anyone else on Atlantis dreams as much as they did when they first walked through that wormhole, but I think Carson did. I think he really believed that we would survive...and prevail. And not just us. He wanted everyone to live – human, Wraith, even, I would guess, Replicator, if he could find a way. Sheppard likes to think of himself as an optimist, but he was never in Carson's league. Carson truly believed.
 
Perhaps, because he understood, better than most, the life cycle of things, he could think that way. He knew that life moved on, relentlessly, on and on. In every family he comforted after losing a loved one, in every pat on the back he received after delivering a baby, in every gripped hand when he had to explain a life changing infirmity, in every hug he received after saying the word benign...or malignant. Life moved on all around him, and he saw that every day. 
 
So, he remained an optimist, in the face of a reality where the only constant is that everything can and will change, and the only way to survive is to grow and change along with it.
 
Today, I lost a friend. I'm not going to hope he's in a better place, because I don't think there is a better place than right here. I'm just going to say that I miss him.
 
And that I wish I were more like him.
 
I wish we were all more like him.
 
Because, without him by our side, I'm not sure we'll remember to keep dreaming, to keep hoping, to remember how to push through when the changes come. Because more will come. Atlantis will change. We will all change.
 
And so, I ask only this. Don't let Carson's memory live on only in those he saved. Let Carson himself, the man, live on in all of us. Let our monument to his memory be living the way he lived, and never letting hope die.

And so I say again, and so say we all:

Thank you, Carson.  For everything.
___________________________________________________________

(The title is derived from the first verse of an Emily Dickenson poem—Number 712:

 Because I could not stop for Death—
He kindly stopped for me—
The Carriage held but just Ourselves—
And Immortality )


  • Music:Scrubs...:)

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[info]nottasha wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 03:42 am (UTC)
Thank you
I needed that. You made it better. This is what SHOULD have been said on the show.

still... tearing up a bit now... but getting better.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 03:55 am (UTC)
Re: Thank you
Thank you, my friend!
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[info]sgatazmy wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:06 am (UTC)
*claps* yes, a much more fitting eulogy.

And if Carson was Rodney's best friend, why did Weird give the eulogy??? Why???

thanks for this.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:15 am (UTC)
Hee hee hee...I don't know if "Weird" was intentional, but it cracked me up!

Something I spotted in watching it a second time, Rodney did speak *before* her. You see him leaving his spot standing next to the casket before Weir gave her speech. I think she's just naturally the final word giver. I just felt it wasn't enough to describe the kind of person Carson was. He was so much more than that.
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[info]sgatazmy wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:16 am (UTC)
Wow. I need to go check that. And you know what else I was wondering. maybe Rodney doesn't consider John a best friend because he sees him more as a brother?
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[info]sgafan33 wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 07:16 am (UTC)
Carson was the closest thing Rodney had to a best friend. Carson understood the emotional Rodney. Who, like Katie, knew Rodney pretty well, and still liked him. Who put up with his whining and teasing and disparaging comments about medicine. Who, knowing all that, still wanted spend an afternoon fishing with the man.

John is Rodney's buddy. The one that Rodney goes to throw him off a balcony, to play sim games and chess, to protect him on away missions. Someone to challenge and fights back. John doesn't support Rodney emotionally because John doesn't do the emotional thing well himself. "We're good, right?" "Of course!" is as heavy as it gets with them.

Two good friends to fill different needs.

BTW, David Hewlett said in his MGM interview that there was a scene between Rodney and Carson in Tao that didn't get filmed because of time. David wanted to do it for the DVDs but it didn't happen. Now I'd really would like to know what that was. Maybe somebody can ask David or Paul at a convention about it.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:24 pm (UTC)
Oh, there are lots of questions I have for the writers! I'd like to know why Martin Gero has sort of revised his outlook since Season One, versus, say, Carl Binder, whom I think has generally remained the same in his writing. I think I would go to a Con just to get that chance. Anyone reading this going to a Con sometime soon? LOL!

On the two friends, I agree, they are different. I think, as has been heavily discussed in lots of other places, that Carson was Rodney's obvious friend. He liked him, and said so, and Rodney knew that. While John is the friend that, I think marf the river said this? Is accidental? Rodney just doesn't think of him the way he does of Carson, maybe doesn't think to put him in the friend category. But, at the same time, when it comes to the real emotional stuff -- like dealing with his sister or dealing with his death -- it was John he went to. *That's* what is odd. So, I think, oddly, that it's not correct to say that John doesn't support Rodney emotionally. On the contrary, Rodney seems to go to John first when he really needs to be propped up. So...it's confusing.

It does make it harder to write in fic, since we're purporting to be inside their heads, but, hell, it wouldn't be fun if it wasn't challenging, right?
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 03:39 pm (UTC)
Mmmm, more as a brother? Honestly, no. I don't think Rodney knows how to think about John. I think he sees him there, loves to hang out with him, knows, perhaps instinctively, that they are friends -- maybe even close friends -- but he wouldn't catagorize it. I think it "baffles" him to think that anyone would like him, really. Carson honestly did, and expressed it clearly and in words, and Rodney was able, finally, in death to know what that meant. That he was the closest thing he know of to having a best friend. It doesn't make John any less in Rodney's eyes, just...not the same. To me, yes, they act like brothers. Meaning, it's unspoken. Whether Rodney recognizes or realizes that...I don't think so.

Okay, I shouldn't answer comments when I'm supposed to be at work and *working*. LOL! Articulation is not my strong suit!

Oh, hey, I will say this. Liviapenn (I found this off the SGANewsletter) wrote an interesting discourse on the subject on her livejournal. It's under "Meta" on yesterday's Newsletter. I don't agree with it completely, but it has a lot of truism's in it. You should check it out!
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[info]tringasolitaria wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 07:06 am (UTC)
Well done, and I caught the small echo of BSG in the last line. :-) Good job. As far as John and Rodney's friendship, I agree with what you've said. I'd also add that I think that Rodney probably tends to categorize people. Elizabeth=boss, Radek=co-worker, John=team leader, possibly not as dumb as the other soldiers. I think he has progressed beyond that a little in his interactions with the Atlantean group, but, like you, I don't think it would occur to him to label John as "Best Friend". I think that in Rodney's mind, John is still in a different box, that of his team leader, and I think he's pretty possessive of that relationship and that team. We saw that in McKay & Mrs Miller, which I just re-watched by the way. Very good episode. :-) He also admires Sheppard a great deal, although he'd probably never admit it. But the times we see him trying to emulate Sheppard's military attitude says a lot. Hmm, maybe you've said all this before. It's late-I'm sorry. Hope you don't mind me throwing my two cents in, if it's even worth that! :-)
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[info]tringasolitaria wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 08:26 am (UTC)
Actually, a better word would be compartmentalize..... but I can't edit the earlier comment. Don't ask me why I'm still up..... :-(
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:13 pm (UTC)
It's sort of annoying that you can't edit comments. Or email. It's an oddity to LJ that I don't much like. Alas!
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:12 pm (UTC)
BSG? Alas, no, I don't watch the show (too dark for me. I see bits and pieces, but can't handle a whole hour), but I do know my Shakespeare! LOL!

And I love your two cents! I think it makes good sense! (No rhyme intended ).
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[info]tringasolitaria wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:33 pm (UTC)
Shakespeare? Oh...(blush) Sorry, that went over my head. :-) I was just thinking of the closing scenes at the memorial service in the BSG miniseries where they echo "So say we all" back and forth several times. But for the record, I don't watch BSG anymore either. Stuck with it for a season and a half but it just got too depressing, plus the cylon religion thing was getting far too creepy for me. Anyway, thanks for the reply.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:44 pm (UTC)
Hee hee! That's okay! I take it people died on BSG? How shocking on that show! LOL!

And don't worry -- it's a common phrase for memorials and the like, but not outside that. Can't remember the last time I heard it used when it wasn't either on stage, in some commendation ceremony or at a funeral, so...there you go. Now I'm curious, though, what I would get if I googled it!
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[info]tringasolitaria wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:38 pm (UTC)
(No rhyme intended ).

No rhyme intended, but maybe a pun? :-)
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[info]iamrighthere wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 06:04 am (UTC)
I...uh...oh... why didn't they say this in the actual scene? Why? Is it too much to give us something after they have taken someone so precious away???
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:26 pm (UTC)
He was, wasn't he. Carson was too good to be lost. I don't think they were aware of just how different his character was from the others. It's funny -- as much as I like Weir, I do wish they had lost her instead because, perhaps cruelly, I thinks she's replaceable. They don't really "need" her, and anyone with a bit of a backbone could take her place. But I do not think Carson, because of the dynamic he brought to the table, really was. It leaves a hole. That's all I'm saying.
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[info]sgafan33 wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 07:17 am (UTC)
Tipper, you always have just the right words. Thanks for this.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:27 pm (UTC)
Thank you. :)
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[info]alientje wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 11:27 am (UTC)
If only Weir had used that eulogy, or at least parts of it. It's much more personal and it fits Carson.

Still, I love the last scene between Rodney and Carson.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:29 pm (UTC)
I agree -- I liked that last scene. There's some discussion floating around that it was cliche or cheesy, but I thought it was nice closure for Rodney. Part of me though...sort of wishes he hadn't gotten that closure, because it could have played through into the next episodes...Of course, maybe it still will but...

Eh, don't mind me. I think to much.
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[info]alientje wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 07:10 pm (UTC)
You're not the only one who thinks too much. When Elizabeth said something like "I never got any complaints about him", how is that a compliment? The speech wasn't fitting. Besides that, something else is bugging me: three people died in the first explosion, and later on the man picking up the tumor from Carson must've died in the same blast. So why was there only one casket in the 'gate room? Had they had those other funerals as well? That doesn't make sense if they're personally carrying the casket back to earth. I know how they want to make it a memorial to Carson, but neglecting the other deaths is not the way to do that.

Anyhow, I thought up a fix it for that last scene, I'll copy/paste from my LJ post:

OK, as it's been bugging some people, I've thought of a possible of how Rodney could be seeing Carson in that last scene. I think it was written for the closure, and just disregard reality, so I just enjoyed it and decided not to nitpick. If you do nitpick, here's my solution: after the funeral Rodney is still upset. He decides to take something for it, so he goes to the infirmary, without thinking about that, where he of course is immediately reminded of the fact that Carson's not there. He doesn't want to ask anyone else, so he picks up some medication himself. I think by now he has enough experience with the art of voodoo that he knows his way around the medicine cabinet. As I don't have any medical experience, this is the tricky part, but there should be some medicine out there that calms you down as well as being able to mess with your head a little (aka sleepwalking, hallucinations, whatever). McKay could've picked up the wrong medicine, or taken too much, and when he takes a walk on the pier he says Carson. He needs his moment of closure, so his mind conjures his best friend.

There. That's a plot bunny in the works, take it if you want. ;-)
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[info]gate_biscuit wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 02:38 pm (UTC)
Ah, lovely
This is what should have been said. Beckett deserved a eulogy that showed genuine grief, one that acknowledged that Atlantis had lost someone unique and important -- Weir's eulogy could have been delivered on behalf of any generic doctor with decent people skills.

People should be remembered for who they were, not just what they did for a living. ("Ed was a wonderful plumber. The toilets he uncloged all over town will flush forever as a monument to him...")

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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:31 pm (UTC)
Re: Ah, lovely
LOL! Beckett the plumber! Oh, that just makes me gleeful!

Thanks Biscuit!
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[info]gate_biscuit wrote:
Jan. 20th, 2007 05:12 am (UTC)
Re: Ah, lovely
No, thank YOU.

I'm adding "eulogizing" to the list of stuff Weir's not allowed to do any more. No diplomacy, no negotiation, no weird brittle hugs of the senior staff and for the love of God, NO EULOGIZING!
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[info]sablecain wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 04:52 pm (UTC)
This was wonderful and SO needed. The whole eulogy/funeral scene didn't seem to do justice to Carson at all and this is the perfect fix!
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 19th, 2007 06:12 pm (UTC)
Thanks D! I know it made me feel better.
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[info]indusnm wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:15 am (UTC)
So good
Hey, you wrote one too!
So many writers have been inspired to write tags for Sunday. It wasn't enough, but what would have been?
Love this, it's so sweet!
By the way, I never wrote SGA gen before your poem challenge, and now I've written another one (my Sunday tag!)
And your scrubs music, is it the soundtrack or the absolutely brilliant musical?
Indus
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 21st, 2007 06:09 pm (UTC)
Re: So good
It was the show itself! Totally cracked me up!

And thank you! I'm glad you liked it!

I think Sunday tags are being written because we all need some sort of resolution, you know? Each in our own way. Some are writing missing scenes, others are writing tags, I wrote a eulogy...it's the best way to deal.

Thank you again! And so COOL that you're writing! Write more! And lots! LOL!
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[info]recycledfunk wrote:
Jan. 24th, 2007 04:30 am (UTC)
That was perfect. You reminded me that Carson was a *Doctor* That if anyone knew what life was truly about, it was him. And now that that influence is gone from Atlantis, I wonder where they are going to go in the future. My prediction? Dark places. Thank you for posting this, it was very theraputic *where's that frelling Kleenex?!* and I hope you don't mind my friending you. I promise not to borrow your stuff & lose it.
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[info]tipper_green wrote:
Jan. 24th, 2007 05:16 am (UTC)
LOL! Please! Friend away! (I never remember to friend people myself...I stumble around LJ blindly still. LOL!) And thank you! I'm so glad you liked it!
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(Anonymous) wrote:
Jan. 3rd, 2008 12:36 am (UTC)
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