One thing I’m really quite good at is rambling.  So when my friend went into a hospice I sent her the occasional rambling message to read at those times she might be on her own and need a distraction.  They were really rather boring – things I’d heard or done, or a photo I’d taken, but she said that she liked reading them.

Today was her funeral. I thought I’d write her one more ramble as I’m ashamed to say that I’d not sent her a message for ages.  I was waiting for something big enough to require a mention to happen.  And it didn’t.

But Sarah, I know you’d love the fact that today it did – and it was you, and you still managed to make me smile.

First was as I walked into the church and I overheard the vicar talking to your husband.  You’d asked for us all to wear something purple.  The vicar was assuring your husband that she was indeed wearing purple, it’s just that they were her ‘undergarments’ and therefore not on show.  I heard a slightly unsure ‘um, thank you’ in response to this revelation.

Then it was the hymn – Love Divine All Love Excelling.  Did you remember when you decided on it that unless you are a six year old boy, half of each verse is impossible to hit the notes on?  And you’d asked the vicar to tell us from you that you wanted us to give the songs ‘some welly’.  I suspect that you were probably watching us all with a smirk as we did our best, but mostly had to mime those parts.  I’m sorry.  I did try though.

And the other smile was as I went back to my car.  I’d not noticed it when I parked, but just above the wall was this:

It made me giggle.

I will leave you to rest now. Big hugs, lovely. Xxx