I have been very touched by the responses to my comments about my sons. It is true that my sons are remarkably successful in the public world, and like any Jewish father, I qvell about them whenever I can. I am reminded that back in 1953, when I was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, my mother asked for my Phi Bete key and that of my sister, and had a pair of earrings made from them. You cannot get any more Jewish Mother-ish than that!
Near the end, I sat with my father in the hospital. He could not talk, because of a breathing tube required by the Emphysema that killed him, but he could understand what I was saying. I stroked his head and said, "You have been a better father to me than your father was to you, and that is the most that can be asked of any man. I will try to be a better father still to my sons." Then I told him that I loved him. That night he died.
I can say honestly that my son, Patrick, is a better father to Samuel and Athena than I have been to him, and in my eyes that counts for far more than his Grandmaster triumphs and all the money he has made in business.
Simply beautiful. Thank you for sharing, Professor.
ReplyDeleteI'm moved and that comment is coming from someone, myself, who had neither a good father nor a good mother and who to avoid being a bad father, wasn't a father at all, according to one of his sons.
ReplyDeleteI'm a good friend, though. At least I hope so...
y Pablo?
ReplyDeletePablo was the best and closest friend I've ever had. I've never enjoyed being with someone so much. I always called him "amigo", never "hijo".
ReplyDeleteThank you for mentioning and remembering him. That means a lot to me.
He was 15 years with us and has been gone for 15 years now.