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TechnoratiPaul and Sheila Were Our Friends
This piece was originally published by CommonDreams.org on Oct. 28, 2003.
* * *
As I drove on I-94 to Lakewood Cemetery on Saturday, my heart was filled with so many emotions. Grief and anguish. Anger and despair. Sadness and joy. Hope. It had been one year since the plane crash that took the lives of six incredible people I was lucky to have known, and whom I miss terribly. On this anniversary, I was feeling overwhelmed with sorrow until I saw a banner hung over an overpass that said:
Paul and Sheila,
May your hope give us hope.
May your love give us love.
May your strength give us strength.
May your faith give us faith.
I carried those comforting words of the one and only Bruce Springsteen with me all day. They echo in my ears still now.
The last day that I saw Paul and Sheila Wellstone was September 29th, 2002. It was the Twin Cities Marathon and a perfect autumn day. Paul and Sheila loved to cheer for the runners and many Wellstone staff and supporters, including Will McLaughlin and Mary McEvoy, stood on the curb outside Judy McLaughlin's home on Summit Avenue shouting words of encouragement at the 25th mile.
Their biggest fan was, of course, Paul. He slapped them on the back, ran out into the street to high-five them, and yelled in the way only Paul could, "You're almost there! Only a mile to go! You're on the home stretch! I know you can do it!"
I had heard Paul speak at hundreds of events before - at schools, senior centers, and labor rallies; in the Senate; at the state fair and even in own my living room. But it was on this beautiful fall day in St. Paul that I realized, more than ever, what was so uniquely special about this man and why I still got goosebumps every time I heard him speak: he was our biggest cheerleader. He supported us, encouraged us, and inspired us.
Paul loved being out there and he wished he could have been running the marathon himself. That day there was a camera crew following Paul and Sheila around. On camera, Paul told this story that I didn't see until months after he died: "I went to an event with the deaf community at St. Paul Technical College. A woman came up to me and said, 'I want to teach you how to sign something.' And she showed me how to sign, 'I am not afraid.' He repeated and signed, 'I am not afraid.' - I will never forget that," he said.
Since October 25, 2002, there has been a vacuum for the thousands of us whose lives were touched by Paul and Sheila, Marcia and Mary, Will and Tom. I miss witnessing the joy that was so evident in their lives, their compassion for humanity, and their hope for building a better tomorrow. The loss is immeasurable.
One year later, on October 25th of this year, I was talking with a friend and told him that the hardest part for me during this past year has been missing those people and not witnessing the embodiment of the goodness that I believed at my very core. When the plane went down, we were all shocked, horrified, and full of mourning. We didn't understand how we could lose so much, so quickly. But now we have had a year of not seeing their determined and smiling faces working for peace and justice, feeling their passion when they spoke, hearing their words of encouragement at the 25th mile. My friend, who is a very wise man, said, "Paul was a religion to us." And he was.
We believed in the principles that Paul and Sheila stood for and we acted on those beliefs. We had faith that goodness and justice would prevail even in the eyes of defeat. We found comfort in their integrity, strength in their courage, peace in their compassion and in everything, hope.
Since that fateful day last October, I have had a button of Paul on my winter coat that I wore every day until it was warm enough outside that I didn't need to wear it anymore. Sometimes I forgot that I had it on. I stood at a coffee shop and the girl at the counter said, "Paul Wellstone was my hero." I was pumping gas and an older gentleman smiled kindly and said, "He sure was a fighter." And there were plenty of comments about what folks thought of Paul's opponent in his final campaign and about the manner in which he conducted himself, but as this is a piece honoring our friends, I will not use expletives.
I was at a holiday party two months after the crash, on Christmas Day, and a friend of mine from high school whom I hadn't seen for quite some time came up to me, hugged me, and with tears in his eyes, told me that because of Paul, his grandmother finally received the veterans' benefits that were due to her late husband and that she didn't have to sell her lifelong home. She received the letter from Paul's office the week of the accident.
There are so many stories like these and quite honestly, wearing Paul over my heart turned into a selfish act in some ways. I love hearing how people's lives were touched by the Wellstones, and I want us to continue to remember and to never forget.
On the last day of the campaign kickoff tour last May, we were just finishing up our last event at Daube's Bakery in Rochester. The bakery was packed and overflowing to the parking lot, and Paul's speech was an incredibly energizing end to four days of campaigning all around the state. After the event, I was trying to get Paul to do a short interview with a reporter I had promised time to after the speech. As I was attempting very unsuccessfully to get Paul closer to the door, he stopped at the bakery counter, grabbed my arm and in all seriousness said to me, "Kelly, have you tried the coffeecake here? It's the best! Sheila and I love it!" I admitted to him that I hadn't and Paul insisted that I buy some to take home with me. He raved to the bakery owners and employees about how fabulous their food was. I think this is what I miss most about Paul and Sheila - how genuinely alive they were. They always took the time to say thank you, to pay attention to things large and small, and to do it with a twinkle in their eyes. They were our cheerleaders.
A marathon is 26.2 miles long. That's about 25.2 miles more than I have ever run. We were standing there, cheering, whistling, clapping and all morning, runners who had made it such a great distance would stop to shake Paul's hand or get a hug or take a picture. So many people thanked Paul and Sheila for being there to cheer, to tell them they had a lawn sign in their yard, and to say they couldn't wait to vote for Paul. Those who wore Wellstone t-shirts or stickers received extra enthusiastic cheers from us.
When people stopped, Paul would laugh and say, "Keep going! Get back out there! You're almost done!" And often, softly, "Thank you for saying that. It means a lot." Hundreds of runners came by. One man I will never forget came up to Paul, took his hand, and said, "I just want you to know how proud I am to have you as my Senator."
So was I, Paul. And you were right about the coffeecake.
Kelly Bjorklund is enjoying a slightly more forgiving climate in the Bay Area, but still enjoys hotdish and calls Minnesota home. She can be reached at bjorklundkelly@yahoo.com.
14 Comments so far
Show AllOnce again, "lightning strikes" and the leading critic of the war party in the congress is dead and the majority of the Senate shifts to the Republicans. Once again, an unlikely event (there was seven miles of visibility that day) drastically alters our politics. When will our nation start connecting the dots? Ditto, truthteller, on Jim Fetzer's "American Assassination".
of course he was murdered, is there any doubt?
I remember the mood at the Wellstone campaign headquarters the night of the election (Mondale was the stand-in). I wish they hadn't picked Mondale as a substitute. Whose foolish idea was that? An elder statesman, and one of our own to be sure -- but not the young/vibrant/energetic Paul. How Norm Coleman got elected is a complete puzzler to me. But it suggests that Paul's appeal was Paul's, not strictly due to his association with the Democratic Party. One indeed wonders whether his death was accidental (I'll always harbor my doubts). It was too sweet of a tipping point for it to have been coincidental, we've seen that Bush & Co. have no problems resorting to extreme violence abroad. We're supposed to think that they are saints at home?
In any case, it goes to show that fuddy-duddy conservative/establishment Dems vs. right-wing/spineless/blow-with-the-wind Republicans like Norm Coleman is a losing proposition. The progressive movement needs someone under 45 or so, with a strong sense of humor, a lot of fight in their personality, and good speaking ability. And most importantly, the joie de vivre.
People are drawn toward those who project that inner joy however dark it gets outside. There's no doubt about it.
I know there are people like this out there. I believe there's a genuine worry about personal safety -- it seems that populists, progressives, etc. run into trouble if they gain too much political traction. So it may well be that about 500 of us need to run for office simultaneously around the country. They can "accident" a few of us, but when the 20th of us happens to mysteriously die before the election people will begin to wonder out loud.
"One man I will never forget came up to Paul, took his hand, and said, "I just want you to know how proud I am to have you as my Senator.""
Positive reinforcement goes a long way, with anyone. Last night, I wrote my own senator to let him know how proud I am that he represents me in the Senate. Of course it's easier when you have a Wellstone, but Ron Wyden from Oregon does a pretty damn good job, too! (Although the Senate Intelligence committee passed the flawed version of the FISA bill 13-2, this week Wyden successfully added an amendment to the FISA bill that requires warrants to spy on Americans *outside* of the country. This is sure to be a poison pill as the president has vowed to veto the bill with this amendment added to it.)
Write to your representatives and let them know what you think about the job they are doing. Remember, it takes more honey to catch flies...
On that grim Saturday morning in October 2002, grief over Paul's death hung over our Peace Rally in Missoula, Montana. Local singer, Amy Martin, who debuted "It's About Oil" that morning, saw a sign, "Peace for Paul" which inspired her to write a heart-rending song, "Peace for Paul." You can hear it (and download it or even buy the CD "Live in Missoula" with both songs and some other great ones like "Consequences") at www.amymartin.org. Some of you may remember that she sang both songs at the SOA-WISC protest that November, but at that time "Peace for Paul" was not yet available on CD. It's still a great song. Shed some cathartic tears, and then let's get to work -- again and again and again!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Vbf49kzWFw
Remember, of course, that Wellstone's death and the loss of his Senate seat to a Republican one month later, gave the Republicans a 51-to-49 majority in the Senate going into 2003.
What might Wellstone have said on the Senate floor in the lead up to the Iraq war three months later?
It is good to be aware of some of the suspicious facts concerning his plane crash-- the malfunctioning airport guidance system, especially.
I remember watching his memorial service on C-SPAN, and how insulted Jesse Ventura was by the partisan spirit of the event. It was great to see the fight in Paul Wellstone's son especially. It seems that anyone seen as progressive is usually put on the defensive and has to make conciliatory speech to power. I wish we had another Wellstone.
I remember marching in the the pre-Iraq-invasion-world-wide-anti-war march in Minneapolis. It was wonderful to be a part of such an event - my first ever (too young for Vietnam, then too deluded for too many years thinking the G8 and World Bank actually did good in the world.)
Of the thousands of signs I saw that day, the one I remember most clearly said: 'Paul and Shelia please help us. They're not listening!"
Was he a perfect human being? No. Was he the perfect politician? No. Did Shelia have her faults? Of course. Did he do his absolute best for the people who had no voice? I believe that he did. Did he act with just a little more moral integrity than we see in the current members walking those now-unhallowed halls of congress? I believe so. Did he sometimes fail to act with the level of integrity he might wished to have shown? Most likely.
Before anyone out there would condemn him, ask yourself the same questions.
Many of us have come to believe that the Senator's death was no accident. Here is a link to a rather long YouTube video of Jim Fetzer, coauthor of "American Assassination: The Strange Death of Senator Paul Wellstone" speaking on the subject. Please pass it on, we can't let the truth be buried or forgotten, we owe it to the Senator's memory, and to prove what a bunch of hateful bastards did this to him and his family, and the American people.
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Vbf49kzWFw
My eyes water up just reading this article... What a guy!
I've watched the documentary "Wellstone!" and if you haven't seen it you can see clips here:
http://www.mnstories.com/archives/2007/02/wellstone_1990.html
It's a good film.
It is amazing how those who might make a change for the better, who truly believe in love, compassion, empathy, understanding, somehow die before they can accomplish their goals. That never seems to happen to the cruel, the greedy, the hateful.
That may simply be the luck of the draw, or it may be that those who believe in love, compassion, empathy and understanding are not into assassination, sabotage, character assassination and the like, so the cruel, the greedy and the hateful are pretty safe.
The Wellstones died about four miles from where I live. I have thought of that tragic day often as we have endured the cruel machinations of our current administration. Senator Wellstone was a genuine, compassionate, determined representative of ordinary people who needed help. He is sorely missed.
Springsteen's words are an affirmation of life and optimism in the face of death, destruction and violence. Like the man who stayed in the World Trade Center with his friend who couldn't walk down the tower.
I was talking with a Vietnam vet who was asked to speak in a school. He wasn't sure of whether he wanted to because he was so angry about the abomination we're in. I told him he should tell them about why he's angry. Where that comes from. About how what's going on is a betrayal of his vision for this country and this world.
Before reading this article, I was thinking this morning of the power of the "I've seen the Promised Land."
Well, we're still climbing to reach that point. Appreciate the good out there, appreciate those who struggle to change our world to a place for people to live decently in and keep on climbing.
If Paul Wellstone were alive today,
I believe we would be refering to him as "President Wellstone"
and America would be in much better standing here and all over the world.