This letter from Ladislav Hejdánek to Professor Jan Patočka, dated May 31, 1972, is a personal birthday greeting that poignantly reflects the political climate of the normalization era in Czechoslovakia. The author laments Patočka's repeated exclusion from academic life, drawing parallels between his current removal from the faculty and the persecution he faced during World War II and the 1950s. Hejdánek expresses profound gratitude for Patočka's intellectual influence, specifically citing his influential lectures on Socratic, Platonic, and Aristotelian philosophy. The correspondence also provides insight into the repressive environment of the time; Hejdánek explains his absence from a planned gathering at Radim Palouš's home as a necessary precaution following his very recent release from detention in Ruzyně prison. The document serves as a testament to the resilience of philosophical dialogue and the strength of personal bonds within the dissident movement despite the systematic efforts of the totalitarian regime to silence intellectual opposition.