Loss

On Tuesday 6 October last, I lost one of my closest friends in the Outer Hebrides. To those who have followed my blogs over the years, she was the lady I initially refer to as Mrs B. In November 2019, she had been diagnosed with probable cancer of the bileduct. Over the following 11 months, she wasted away and lost all strength. Everything that she enjoyed doing was gradually taken from her, until she was no longer able to even negotiate the stairs. After spending a month basically bed-bound, she passed away as the sun rose on October 6th. Over the past four weeks, I have attempted to come to terms with the loss of a close friend, who had let me into her life to a surprising extent. She had made me part of her family, allowed me to actively participate in her B&B business (welcoming guests, preparing rooms) and assist her with some private affairs. 

I have consistently said to her that I felt hugely privileged to have been able to help her. Latterly, she required care, which was given by a relative who was living with her. Nurses also called round on a more or less regular basis, and prescribed medication which helped to boost her quality of life for a number of weeks. 

Since 2005, we have travelled round the island on numerous occasions, by bus and by car, to enjoy its beauty and its people. The last trip was on my birthday, in August, when we were taken by one of her relatives to Laxdale and Newmarket, just north of Stornoway. 

On Thursday 8 October, 2020, we accompanied her to her final resting place in the Old Cemetery at Sandwick, a mile to the east. Her grave is not far from the seawall and not far from the sea. She always wanted to live near the sea, and her home was on the seafront in Stornoway. She brought up four sons, who gave her 11 grandchildren, now varying in ages from 5 to 35. Mrs B also had three great-grandchildren, the last one was born only a few weeks before her death. 

The year 2020 was difficult, as it precluded most visiting and forced her to close down the B&B. But she battled through to the end, even enjoying a new pair of spectacles just ten days before her death. She enjoyed life, right to the very end. 

I missing her, but will carry on. Can't do anything else.