Legacy

Today marks one year since our beautiful Mum went on ahead of us.

I miss her so much more than I expected.

If Mum had written down exactly how she wanted to leave this world, her wishes would have been granted, down to the smallest detail. At 11:50am on Sunday morning 15th June 2025, the day before her Great Grandson’s first birthday, she just quietly slipped away. She was asleep in her bed with only her elder daughter by her side. No fuss, no drama, no audience, just quiet and peaceful. That’s how our Mum lived her life.

We all want to leave a legacy don’t we? Our achievements; our successes; something we painted, wrote, built or created; a large sum of money; property or something else that can be passed on to the next generation. Something worthy of the memory.

But our Mum didn’t do a degree. In fact she didn’t get any qualifications. She didn’t have a remarkable career, or any career for that matter. She was the receptionist at the office where Dad worked. She couldn’t bake or cook an elaborate banquet. She never did anything that got her into the newspaper, not even the local newspaper. She couldn’t sing, or write, or draw and she was never part of any clubs or groups. In fact, she had a very small circle of friends, with whom she only went out alongside her husband.

People outside of our family might say that our Mum was unremarkable; that she was easily forgettable; that she didn’t leave a mark on this world at all. But they would be wrong.

Our Mum was kind, gentle and thoughtful. People on the bus and in town would just start talking to her because they could see that she was someone they could trust and would have time to listen to them. Mum was grateful for everything. She always used to say, “Politeness costs nothing.” Even when dementia had stolen her memories, she would always say thank you for even the smallest gesture. Mum had time for everyone and she judged no-one. Unlike the majority of people of her generation, our Mum held no prejudices against anyone. She would just say, “We’re all different.”

But our Mum did leave a legacy. We are her legacy: her family. Mum’s love, kindness and accepting nature now live in us.

Mum never liked a fuss or to be the centre of attention. So I will honour her by not posting this, or anything else on Facebook to draw attention to this day. What mattered to our Mum was her family. And we all remember this day.

Here’s to our Mum and to her Legacy.