A tribute to a very special gentleman

This is a tribute to a very special gentleman who I spent a lot of time with over the past couple of years. He made it to 95, living completely independently with no help other than his son doing the gardening and me coming over every one or two weeks to help with the housework. Well, that was the theory but over the months he allocated less of my time to chores and more of it to drinking tea and discussing the headlines of the day!

He always started by discussing which politician had said what, and generally how daft they were being, with some concern over the state of the country. His knowledge of current affairs extended to all the conflicts going on around the globe and he shared his thoughts on these before telling me stories of all the places he had been to in the navy and all the jobs he had had afterwards.

He told me so much about his family that I felt like I knew everyone personally and when I met them at his funeral, it turned out that they all felt that they knew me too.

I had extra responsibility for him because his family lived far away so when that day came that no one had heard from him, I was asked to go over and sadly found that he had had a stroke. I called the ambulance and stayed with him, keeping him comfortable, and updating the family until the paramedics came.

Sadly he never recovered but at least he got to stay at home where he felt comfortable, surrounded by hundreds of family photos until the very end.

The funeral was very special because the vicar knew him well and he had been very involved with the church, which was packed with friends and family. Meticulously organised right until the end, he had planned his funeral with precision and he left the church to the sound of the dawn chorus because of his deep love of nature.

On what was already a very moving day, I went to talk to the family afterwards and was overwhelmed by their gratitude and appreciation of how I had helped him over the years and at the end. Even his adult grandchildren who lived abroad, spoke as though they knew me. I have never had a job that can seem so mundane on one level and so hugely important on another. 

I was so touched by the warmth of this family's gratitude and the kindness of their words. His son, the gardener, gave me a birdhouse that he had made himself to say thank you. My heart melted when I opened it. 

I felt truly overwhelmed by how much the family appreciated the support I have given him. This gentleman and his family will always have a special place in my heart.