I realize that this web site reflects on my dad’s life and his many accomplishments. Patrick was a prolific writer, avid reader, skilled musician, witty raconteur, good friend, and active in pursuit of the arts.
He was especially joyful about his relationship with Stephanie which he considered the best thing that ever happened to him.
It’s not my intention for this site to be hagiography though I realize it sometimes seems that way. No, despite those qualities of his that we admire, he carried with him many flaws.
Case in point: Patrick was not, for much of his life, a good parent.
This letter from my mom to Patrick in 1972 highlights the challenges she faced in his absence. Whether having him there would have made a difference is pure conjecture, the stuff of one of his science fiction stories, but the repercussions of his absence are well documented, as in this correspondence.
I’m the son of Patrick of Meadows.