Recently I discovered someone had dedicated a bench to my friend B, who died a few years ago. The bench is situated on the Wirral Way, which is a footpath where B spent many an hour with her pet dogs. As the Create Challenge says, the bench evoked many memories for me as I sat there.

B was fond of baking. She invited people round for afternoon tea so she could share the scones she had made. I was honoured to receive an invitation on many an occasion. While we ate, B would tell jokes, or anecdotes from her youth, and was always interested in how her guests were, too, so it was amusing company.

She was also a talented artist, and gave me a beautiful painting as a housewarming present when I got a place of my own. I showed her some of my (comparatively childish) watercolours, and she gave me an art lesson one day. Her technique for depicting clouds was to paint them 'faster, faster!' so she would be very proud to see me these days painting along with Bob Ross and creating 'happy little clouds' in less than an hour.

One time I was particularly glad of B's friendship was when my partner D and I invited her to my house for afternoon tea. We all got on very well, but then D received a telephone call from her dogsitter to say her pet dog had died. B was able to comfort D with the benefit of her understanding and experience, having been a dog owner for something like 70 years. In later years, Betty and I continued to meet for afternoon tea and comforted each other with understanding, as her partner died a few months after D died.

Thus B's bench, with its lovely view of the Wirral, evokes happysad memories for me, and I am thankful to know it is there.

SashaQ

08.03.21 Front Page

Back Issue Page