Our Mum (Richard's Eulogy) Our Mum, the thing about our Mum is that being a mum was what she enjoyed the most. Fussing over us, hugging us, telling us off, being proud of us and cooking for us, always cooking for us. She loved nothing more than getting us round the kitchen table and feeding us all. Nothing fancy mind you, roasts and stews in the Winter and barbecues in the summer, always with roast potatoes. She loved roast potatoes. There’s only one occasion I recall when Mum’s cooking was not up to its usual standard. One evening, out of the blue, she served up jumbo sausage rolls and tinned spaghetti hoops. This was so out of character we had to ask why? Her answer, delivered with her typical bluntness, was “Well, you have to sausage rolls and spaghetti hoops some time” When I think back, most of my memories of our Mum centre around fantastic meals at our kitchen table. Firstly just the four of us, but as we got older and had girlfriends who became wives Mum adopted Katherine and Andrea as daughters and the dining table extended. And then when grandchildren arrived - Holly, Alfie and Isla, Mum’s joy was unbounded - she was their wonderful Nanny and they loved her and they were loved very much. And nothing made Mum happier than seeing us all squashed around the ever expanding kitchen table. When she cooked, Mum loved a tipple, and sometimes more than a tipple. On one occasion, she had cooked us a wonderful roast dinner, served it and then disappeared. We sat there for five minutes or so, before we went to find her, only to find her fast asleep in bed. Normally red wine would be Mum’s drink of choice, but not always: Katherine and I enjoyed our first holiday together in Greece and we brought back with us a bottle of Mataxa brandy for Mum & Dad. Shortly after, we sat down to another wonderful meal, but we soon realised Mum was a little worse for wear - giggling and slurring - “What’s up Mum? What have you been drinking?”. It turns out she had tried the Mataxa, found it too strong for taste, so she decided to “water” it down with some cider! My other main source of memories for Mum are the social occasions she enjoyed so much. Trips up the M1 to Daventry to visit Margarita and Vince, along with Audrey and Bill for wonderous weekends full of laughter, wine and dancing. The mad Christmas Eve parties our parents held for many years that so many of you attended and always seemed to end with Dad getting thrown in the pool fully clothed. And then, the very next day, glorious Christmas dinners with her Mum Phoebe, her sister Margaret and Margaret’s family Alan and Joanne. And all the one-off events - birthdays, anniversaries, and even, bizarrely, the opening of the garage at their beloved house, Redmays. Our mum loved these events and always seemed at her happiest, busily skipping from conversation to conversation, laughing and constantly ensuring everyone was having a good time. Redmays has always been a place where there’s been so much fun with parties and family gatherings. Smiles and laughter were always a big part of family life and we know Mum would want that to continue. The past few years haven’t been kind to Mum, she became poorly and bed bound. Things were difficult for all of us. We would like to thank so many of you here today for supporting our Mum and Dad through this time, with the occasional phone call or visit for a cup of tea. It hasn’t always been easy but it would have been a lot harder without so many of the people in this room. Sometimes Mum became frustrated with her situation and sometimes this frustration was taken out on those around her. Please forgive her, this wasn’t our Mum, remember her as she was before. When someone you love so dearly passes on, they transition from someone you used to make memories with, to just the memories. So all you have left is the memories. We have fabulous memories of our beautiful Mum, make sure you take the time to make memories with the people you love. Finally, we’d like to thank-you all for coming today and hope that you’ll join us after at The Potters Arms for some roast potatoes and cider/Mataxa cocktails.