Photo Friday: Author’s choice – The Festive Season

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It’s hard to feel very festive when someone you love has just died but because I am in the process of trying to feel celebratory about Grandad’s long life rather than overwhelmingly sad – I thought I’d show you where I’ve been this week. After making all the Funeral arrangements for Monday, I travelled to see my two little grandchildren, who are of course my Grandad’s only great great grandchildren. He absolutely adored them; his face would light up whenever their names were mentioned, or a letter or card arrived that they’d sent – and he was  always “over the moon” with joy if they visited. So this week, I visited them for him …….  to see my little grandson in his school nativity play and to plant a  last  great big smacky kiss on them both from their great great grandad.

So in keeping with the festive spirit: CHRISTMAS PAST, PRESENT (this week) and FUTURE (next week):

Christmas Past: Happy times: Grandad sharing a Christmas present with his great great grandson at Christmas:

Christmas Present (this week): My dear little grandson dressed as a sheep for his school nativity play (which I went to see this week). He was the best sheep in the whole world – he skipped about the stage and his total commitment to the role, exuberant energy and bouncy excitement brought tears of sadness and joy to my eyes. I took the photo below at my son’s home, just before we left to take the little one back to school to star in the nativity play. His beautiful little sister was dressed ready for bed as she was too young to go and watch.

Christmas Future (next week): The stockings hang ready, the tree is up and I can barely believe we are going to Grandad’s funeral on Monday. I have made it as beautiful as I know how. There will be so few of us present that I didn’t want us to have to try and sing hymns – so I have arranged for a CD of the Cambridge University Choir  to be played  – their sweet angelic voices will sing beautiful haunting  Christmas Carols for us instead. The funeral flowers I have ordered in the form of a beautiful Christmas Wreath: Holly with red berries, Ivy, Mistletoe for kisses, Rosemary for remembrance, Cinnamon sticks, fir cones, and a white lily for each grandchild, great grandchild and great, great grandchild – threaded with a beautiful red and gold ribbon. I didn’t want a second funeral car – instead we will show our respect for a great and much loved man who toiled for over 100 years by walking behind his hearse as it drives slowly to the church …… and I will hold my dear little grandson’s hand as I walk,  which will bring me great comfort as it reminds me that life goes on – and we still have the next genetic generation of my lovely grandad to remind us of him. A Chief mourner will walk in front of the hearse carrying a top hat – Grandad held much store by being respectful to the dead; he always wore a black armband on black tie on the anniversary of the death of anyone important in his life – when you live to be so old you know many people who have died; so he often wore them.  The coffin will be draped with an exuisite purple (the traditional colour for funerals) and gold cloth – to make it easier on the tiny children and the short ceremony will be very personal to Grandad; I have written some words about his life especially for him, which will be read aloud. There will be no wake, no rowdy drinking, no idle chit chat ………  just a quiet remembrance at home. We are trying to think celebratory - we are trying to remind each other that 100 years was a great innings – and so very many people get nowhere near as long a life. And Grandad was completely healthy until he was 99 years old – it was only the last year of his life that his body started to fail him …… and his mind remained mostly alert and sharp until the end. He never ever lost his ability to laugh and joke and make the very best of life ……..  but it is the end of an era and I am struggling to feel joyously celebratory. I shall miss him so much … and today feels very hard because for as long as I can remember I have visited him on a Friday. This Friday I can’t.

RIP my lovely Grandad.

Grandad chose the church himself – and it is beautiful; below is a photo of the interior that I took this week (the photo doesn’t do it justice):

~

PHOTO FRIDAY ADVANCE DIARY

26th December: Photo Friday is taking a break ……. BUT as an option … for those full up with turkey … stuffed to the gills with chocolates … all boozed out … needing a break from the relatives … sick of the festive TV programmes … itching for some “me time” on the computer …. you can post: “funny Christmas photos OR video or of my family” – past and present pictures acceptable! The funnier and more festive the better!

2nd January: New year Video Challenge entitled: New Year Resolutions! (be brave, commit your New Year Resolutions to video so we can all check up on you achieving them as the year progresses!)