Corporal Matthew Cornish 29 of the first battalion of the light infantry was killed by a mortar shell which landed on his base at the old state building in Basra, his memorial was held at leeds parish church at 10.30am sunday.
the strain shows on army Commanders faces
The service gets underway
The strain shows on the face of a high ranking army officer as he leaves yet another memorial service for a solider killed in Iraq.
Corporal Matthew Cornish 29 of the first battalion of the light infantry was killed by a mortar shell which landed on his base at the old state building in Basra, his memorial was held at leeds parish church at 10.30am sunday.
Ironically the mother of Corporal Cornish is a long standing peace activist Anni Rainbow, along with fellow peace activist Lindis Percy they have held a regular peace camp outside Menwith hill since 1992.
Annie Rainbow failed to attend the service as she has been taken seriously ill falling to a stroke within weeks of her sons death. Close friends of Anni talked of how the news has destroyed her, she has had to face up to all her worst fears and unfortunately the shock was just to much for Anni, already wheelchair bound through illness to take, she strongly condemned this war and now she has paid the ultimate price not only losing her son but with it her health as well.
The service was a solemn affair attended by a handful of friends, family and local dignitaries who constantly kept one eye on the door in the hope that Matthew's mother may eventually find the strength to attend, but it was not to be, her epitaph, to fall to her worst fear, the death of her son in a war she so strongly despised.
Corporal Matthew Cornish 29 of the first battalion of the light infantry was killed by a mortar shell which landed on his base at the old state building in Basra, his memorial was held at leeds parish church at 10.30am sunday.
Ironically the mother of Corporal Cornish is a long standing peace activist Anni Rainbow, along with fellow peace activist Lindis Percy they have held a regular peace camp outside Menwith hill since 1992.
Annie Rainbow failed to attend the service as she has been taken seriously ill falling to a stroke within weeks of her sons death. Close friends of Anni talked of how the news has destroyed her, she has had to face up to all her worst fears and unfortunately the shock was just to much for Anni, already wheelchair bound through illness to take, she strongly condemned this war and now she has paid the ultimate price not only losing her son but with it her health as well.
The service was a solemn affair attended by a handful of friends, family and local dignitaries who constantly kept one eye on the door in the hope that Matthew's mother may eventually find the strength to attend, but it was not to be, her epitaph, to fall to her worst fear, the death of her son in a war she so strongly despised.
Comments
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To Anni
20.11.2006 19:37
Bee
"Puts All Heaven In a Rage"
24.12.2006 15:12
I knew that George W Bush being elected was not a good thing (!), kind of expected something to happen around the year 2001, could not but help when it did happen (9/11) that there was something "funny" about the whole thing - met Anni through protesting aboujt the invasion of Iraq - and then witnessed more and more of her suffering - long before her son got killed in Iraq William Blake's words "Puts All Heaven In a Rage" occured to me, thinking of all the suffering she had endured in this naff world...now things have even got way beyond that - I wish you Love and Peace for this coming New Year, Anni - I've been wishing you this every year since I met you - I can only hope 2007 will be different.
Jane Pickup
e-mail:
Jane.Pickup1@btopenworld.com