Judy Lucas

Mum spent her life looking after dad, and me, and my sister Julie, and cooking in my grandmother's nursing home, then in a factory canteen so she and dad could have enough money to bring us up properly.

She always smiled, always just got on with things, made and iced wonderful cakes til her arthritis got too much and she and dad were inseparable for nearly 50 years til a series of heart attacks dad didn't let me and Julie know about or how severe they were.

When you went, mum, you were right dad was desolate. He and you did at least get to enjoy being with Dom in your last few years.

Now you're in the same grave as dad. He wasn't religious - he said being a carpenter and teaching children was following in Jesus footsteps. You and dad were good, old-fashioned people who worked so hard for what little they got -dad had to sell your house to an insurance company to survive after you died.

There's nothing of you now in Hayling.

There's a lovely grave dad's suister Kaye looks after because it's 3 or 4 hours drive away and my MS maKES IT DIFFICULT.

bUT IT'S MY GRIEF THAT MAKES BEING THERE RIGHT NOW IMPOSSIBLE.

i,M SO SORRY i DIDN'T SAY ENOUGH HOW MUCH i LOVED YOU.

You didn't believe bad of anyone. You accepted people as they were and liked to work hard to help them.

But you and dad both expected to end your lives with somme years free to be together and keep going round the world with him like you did when he was in the Navy, and later took the family to some of those plaves -we were all stationed in Gibraltar for 2 years which was one long holiday really. And sunny and warm.

But your heart attacks meant you then dad had to take early retirement

And you were both too ill to travel and never got those few years...

You were so innocent, so unable to believe ill of anyone. You made the world a much kinder place just by being in it. Now you're (both) gone it can't ever be the same...