Patrick's Memorial

Last weekend I attended Patrick’s memorial service in Bethesda, MD. There was quite a crowd there. Maybe 300-400 people packed into a local high school theater. I spotted quite a few people from Dickinson whom I haven’t seen in years because they had graduated earlier than I did.

I had run track with many of them. At one point, we stood together and talked and laughed about Patrick’s antics at track practice. We all had the same memories and laughed at the same stories. Seeing the others gave me a sense of togetherness, that we were all connected in this particular way, through track and through Patrick. We had come together again, maybe for the last time, but in a way it felt good to know that my memories of Patrick and of track were shared by others.

I guess that’s the silver lining at funerals. That people separated by distance, age, and experience can share a connection that impels them to come together at the end of things.

Another silver lining, for me anyway, was that I was able to pay a visit to my friend Julia, who lives in the DC area and whom I hadn’t seen in long time. We went to dinner at a nice burger joint in DC, sat by a fountain drinking coffee and catching up, and then at night walked the length of the National Mall from the Capitol to the Washington Monument.

From directly beneath the Washington Monument, on one side you can see the WWII and Lincoln Memorials, far off to your left you can see the dome of the Capitol, and across the water you can just glimpse the Jefferson Memorial.

Let me tell you: it was great. Washington is a majestic city, especially when compared with NYC. There are lots of marble and granite building, and the whole place just emanates feelings of power, history, and importance. This, I suppose, is why you find so many power-hungry blood sucking politicians in the area.

It was a day of conflicting feelings. I said goodbye to Patrick, but reaffirmed connections with many other people. As bad as this might be to say, I felt lucky that I hadn’t been extremely close to Pat. I can’t imagine the devastation of his parents, of his brothers, and of his close friends. The whole day made me feel very mortal, but contentedly so.