by E. P. Ned Burke

Created on: May 04, 2008

A Legend In My Time

In his time, my grandfather was just another loving, hard-working father and husband who did what he had to do to put food on the table and clothes on the backs of seven children. It was only after his death that family and friends sat around to recall his exploits, many centered around his feats of strength and his dogged determination.

He was a tall man without an ounce of fat on his lean body. But, it was his hands that attracted the most attention. He had gorilla-type paws, huge and strong enough to tear through a telephone book or a deck of cards with ease. He did this for sport, or for a frothy pint or two at the local pub.

In his younger days, he enjoyed arm-wrestling two men at the same time. It always brought cheers when he pinned down the first man with his left arm, only to use that same arm to lift a cool one to his lips while, at the same time, lowering his other opponent into submission with his right arm.

His strength came from his years at sea as a whaler. This was back when a few daring men would go out in large rowboats, stick a barbed harpoon into the back of an enormous sea mammal, and then hang on for dear life as the enraged behemoth took them on a hellish ride over the bounding sea until it finally tired. It was not a job for the feint of heart. But my grandfather was up to it, and it helped to change him from a gangly teenager to a seasoned seaman.

His inner strength, however, displayed itself when he brought his young family to America in 1910 and settled in Pennsylvania, close to my grandmother's relatives. Like most immigrants, the only steady work to be found was in the coal mines. For a man who deeply loved the sea and open sky, it must have been a burden for him to go down into the dark, dank earth each day. He did it without complaint, however, because he knew that it was his responsibility.
He relished the company of his family, but he also enjoyed telling tales to the lads down at O'Tool's tavern on Friday nights. Men with callous hands and grimy faces would sit around to listen to William "Dada" Sweeney spin a yarn about the exotic places and people he had seen during his days at sea. For many, these stories were as close as they would ever get to these far-off lands, so they listened with the rapt attention of school children. And when he finished, Dada would wink and say, "Aye, me laddies, these eyes of mine have seen many strange and wondrous things."

Many times, the men would get a newcomer to challenge Dada

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