Casey Sheehan's Father Finds Meaning Amid Grief

[proud2BlibKansan]

Mary Sanchez

June 24 2007

Poetry and lore speak of a mother's grief, a mother's tears for a deceased child. So perhaps the spotlight after her soldier-son's death in 2004 was bound to be captured by Cindy Sheehan.

For Pat Sheehan, the very private role of simply continuing to be Casey's father has been enough - until recently, that is. In a blip of publicity, Cindy Sheehan bowed out of her diminishing limelight, announcing that she would stop her activism against the Iraq war. In doing so, she declared that Casey Sheehan "did indeed die for nothing."

That statement ended Pat Sheehan's silence.

He called me after reading a column in which I disputed his ex-wife's assertion. Yes, he told me, Casey Sheehan's death mattered. We continued talking and e-mailing, and he made me realize what should have been so obvious - that a soldier's life is what is significant, not merely his death, or the activism it might inspire.

Pat Sheehan is pained that people know so little about the religious devotion of his son. Casey Sheehan so loved his Catholic faith that he considered the priesthood, before realizing how much he wanted to be a father himself. As a child, he would pull a nightstand from against the wall, cover it with a blanket and "play" Mass, enlisting his sister to be a nun.


more . . .
http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/op_ed/hc-sanchez0624.artjun24,0,1254692.story?coll=hc-headlines-oped

[BeyondGeography]

1. Very touching...sounds like a very good man

Another passage:

<Pat Sheehan disagrees with his ex-wife's tactics, but he does not wish to be pitted against her. Philosophically, they are close on their views about the war. "But I would rather that Casey be viewed with dignity," he told me.

Cindy Sheehan is not, he insists, the ogre of a mother that critics portray her to be. "I wish her no ill will whatsoever," he said.

In an e-mail, Pat Sheehan wrote: "I haven't quite found my voice yet as Casey's father, but make no mistake, I feel much of the same pain and sense of loss that his mother does. I have chosen to deal with it in my own way. For all of my children, Casey, Carly, Andy and Jane, I am attempting to move forward with a little grace and dignity. They deserve nothing less.">

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. He has been attending anti-war events lately

Sounds like a great man.

[dave29]

2. I hold shrub personally responsible for tearing this family apart

.

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. I would agree with that.