Patrick Meadows and Stephanie Shepard Memorial Site
These are items that visitors may want to read first, especially if this is their first visit to the web site.
It’s easy to be overwhelmed by the amount of information found here, so hopefully this category will give you a solid starting point in your explorations.
There, wadded up in the pocket of Patrick’s bathrobe, hanging in Ivonne’s closet, in the Old Town, on the island he so loved, were his suspenders. Memories surfaced: His dapper look, bearing his age with dignity and class. New memories emerged: Packing the boxes, sorting out the things people wanted, the things to donate; sending […]
Sitting at a long table with strangers, the sea is particularly blue, placidly blue, vividly blue, the blue of Donna’s fancy glasses or Solan water bottles. JPI’m the son of Patrick of Meadows.
Imagine Pat, Dave Wade, George Sikorsky, Toby Knowles, and me in the living room of a basement apartment listening to plastic disks of jazz and other stuff. I remember particularly the operetta, Golden Apple and we were all taken by the lyrics of Lazy Afternoon. Then someone would chime, “It’s Mecca Time” and we went […]
Here’s a link to the video of Patrick’s memorial service on 4 May 2017. JPI’m the son of Patrick of Meadows.
Here’s a Modular Story about Patrick written two days ago by his dear friend Carol Jackson. It’s lovely, simply lovely.
Here’s an interesting piece of fiction by Patrick’s friend Carol Jackson, using the setting of Patrick’s memorial as the backdrop for a tale about a young boy. JPI’m the son of Patrick of Meadows.
A few weeks ago, I was amazed to hear from Norman’s daughter and niece, inspiring me to search the files for other pieces my dad may have written about the artist. Yesterday I discovered this story. Now it’s formatted so that I can share it here. Norman came out of the stone cottage through the […]
A story Patrick sent to me on 13 March 2015. In the kitchen preparing breakfast I have bacon on medium heat, abiding by Steinbeck’s advice to cook it slowly, a couple of eggs at the ready, abiding by my own rule never to put eggs in the refrigerator, and humming to myself to cover the […]
Here’s a letter to a sister, dated 11 Feb 2015. He mentions Bob Dreicer, who died a couple of days earlier, Suzy, Frank, and of course Stephanie. There are several poetic lines, including “We use to scoop all that scenery up together. “ Thanks for the fotos. Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too. Any news […]
Another one of those long conversations with Patrick, sharing a bottle Scotch at my dining table and talking about life, responsibility, love, and minding our own business. This one is from 7 Oct 2014 and was transcribed by Christine. The audio file is too big to post here, but if you want to hear it, […]
Even in mundane correspondence, Patrick and his friends remained true to their artistic, poetic roots. Their imagery and storytelling lushly fills the pages. This is one reason I share these letters: to share his love of words and his practice and appreciation of the wordsmith craft. Patrick saved this exchange in a separate file, clearly […]
Patrick sent this story to me, along with several others, on 25 Dec 2013. This one tells the story of the Zambak, chronicled elsewhere indirectly. Billy Bielmeyer and I were sailing in the Bay of Izmir in his tiny Pirate dinghy. The hills of Izmir rising up on all sides from the deep blue sea […]
E-mail from Patrick on 18 June 2012. I’m taking a charter flight to Pisa and a train to Florence tomorrow, back on 24 june, the day of Jan Juan. I will have my mobile phone. Mostly I’m moved to make the trip because a neighbor just died and his son had a wake, then another […]
Here’s a conversation between Patrick and me on far-ranging subjects and beginning with his message to the grand kids, as a YouTube video using a bunch of still photos from 2011. Warning: it’s about 40 minutes long. The transcription follows. It’s not a perfect transcription, so listen to it when you have time. (I couldn’t […]
Here’s another incomplete autobiographical piece that Patrick wrote about his adventures in Turkey. The earliest version of this file was dated 6 April 1997 and the newest was from 16 February 2011. The latter is what I used below. I suspect the title relates to Billy’s band, but I haven’t checked all the other writings […]