I wonder if, like me, you enjoyed watching the platinum jubilee events over this last weekend. To be very honest I am a bit of an anti royalist and I do feel that the whole circus needs to be trimmed down substantially.

Therefore it came as a bit of a surprise to me that I did feel quite emotional watching some of the events, in particular the service at St Paul’s, the Trooping of the colour and the wonderful procession on Sunday.

The last few years of my mum and dad’s lives were sadly fraught with trauma, poor health and challenging issues. As cynical as it may sound, their passing did come as a sort of relief. No-one ever prepares you for the difficulties in caring for elderly parents and it was a hugely stressful time.

This last weekend’s events seemed to stir new thoughts and emotions and I realised that I was missing my mum and dad. I remembered how, when Kate and William got married, I invited mum and dad over for a champagne lunch and we watched the whole thing on TV. This was when their health was still just about ok and I have such fond memories of that day. I felt so close to them.

Grief is a strange thing and it can hit you at any time, it really is intensely personal and doesn’t follow a set of rules.
It is important to realise this and allow ourselves to feel a whole gamut of emotions. There is no ‘normal’.

My mum and dad would have been especially tickled by the Paddington Bear sketch.

Warmest wishes,

Wendy xx