Pat

12/22/18

Yesterday I got a phone call from Pat Fedele.   We played phone tag for a couple of days, so when the call came through, I was expecting it.   He was sitting in his car, waiting for his beloved wife Sandi while she ran an errand.   There are no quick calls with Pat.   We covered a lot of territory.   About a half an hour in, the almost-95-year-old tenor belted out one of his favorites   –   Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me to the Moon.   Full voice.   No breaks, no missed words, no wavering voice.   Naturally, I was mesmerized.   I knew a song was coming, but, did I have the presence of mind to hit   “record” on my phone?   ‘Course not.

I do, however, have a cd of songs he made as a present for his doctor 6 or 7 years ago, which he gave me.   I can’t give you the Fly Me to the Moon he sang me, but I can give you another of his Sinatra favs: I’ve Got the World on a String:

As I listened, I imagined someone walking by Pat’s car, seeing this old man, head thrown back, belting out Fly Me to the Moon, wondering what that was all about.   An unusual thing, to be sure.   They didn’t see me, on the other end of the phone, smiling and grateful I can call this wonderful man my friend.

Peace.

Steve