another one bites the dust

[llywela]

Day off work today. I've been up over the mountain to Bedwas for the funeral of my Great-Uncle Norman, my Nan's last sibling. It was a nice service, in the same little Methodist church where his wife Doreen's funeral was held 15 years ago, and then off up the road to the little village cemetary to put him to rest with Aunty Do, followed by a bite to eat at the Fisherman's Rest just round the corner. Exactly which fishermen would be looking to rest halfway up a mountain I don't know, but it's a lovely little pub - clean and quiet.

Poor old Norman. He was a dear old thing - the absolute image of his father, my lovely great-grampy. We knew it was coming. He's had Alzheimer's for a few years now, and then around Christmas they put him onto palliative care, liver cancer. He was 85, not a bad age.

Here's Norman as a little dwt in 1932 with his parents Arthur and Clara, older siblings George and Betty, and baby sister Grace, my Nan, who I had crying on my shoulder this morning - she's the only one left now.


Teenage Norman in 1943


Newlyweds Norman and Doreen in 1950


Norman in 1955 with his daughters Christine and Pamela. Pam looks so much like him, it's scary - she's got the classic Ward face and nose, all right!


And Norman in later life, before the Alzheimer's really took hold.


Aunty Do had a sister called Marion, who married a Polish man also named Marian, because that wasn't confusing at all! Uncle Marian was at the funeral today, over 90 and still going strong. In the early days of the dementia, Uncle Norman used to get himself lost regularly trying to get to Marian's house - he'd be so determined to do it by himself, would go out and get on a bus, any bus...and never arrive at his intended destination. We'd all be out searching his old haunts and then in the end the police would bring him home - but he was never bothered about having been lost, he wasn't one to worry about anything, it was his daughters who had all the stress, while he thought he was having a lovely day out!

Rest in peace, Uncle Norm.

We also heard last night that our old family friend Jim Clarke passed away last night. That one was more of a shock, as although we'd known he was unwell, we had thought he was getting better. In my teens and early 20s I was very close to Jim and his first wife Beryl; after she died I stayed close to Jim, he took me on holiday with him to Guernsey one time while I was at university. Then he remarried and we stopped seeing him - he and Janet were always off gallivanting, enjoying a peripatetic retirement, touring the countryside and having a high old time. It'll hit Janet hard now, to have lost him.

We seem to be going to a lot of funerals lately. :(

Comments

[sherrilina.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry for your losses. :( It sounds like your Uncle Norm at least lived to a good old age! RIP. Alzheimer's is the worst, one of my grandfathers had it.

Love the photos!

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Thanks. We've had a lot of Alzheimer's in the family, which bodes well for my future! But then again, there's been a lot of cancer in the family as well, so I comfort myself that at least by the time I get the cancer, I'll probably also have the Alzheimer's and won't know anything about it!

[thisbluespirit]

I am sorry to hear that - and some times all the funerals do seem to come at once. :-/

Although thanks again for sharing the lovely photos & family info. ♥

[catsdownunder.livejournal.com]

You are lucky to have so many photos of your relatives.

Reunited with his beloved.

::: HUGS :::