Exactly one year on - and I miss you just as much as I did on that sad day. You are always in my thoughts. Blue

Blue That is a beautiful poem..and I hope Sophie will forgive me my tears in reading the poem and typing this... From that holiday in Menorca way back in 1999 I have so many happy memories with both of you...even when we had a few years of not meeting up, I was always welcomed as family rather than just a friend and this extended to Sy when I brought him to France! An amazing experience in Moscow to fantastic evenings on the terrace in Gib watching the sun go down...being inspired to try growing Okra and keeping my Ginger in the freezer...so much housekeeping advice!! In France, some lovely trips out to local Chateaux and Monasteries, the fantastic Crepes just up the road...watching the birds on the feeder outside her bedroom window...I am smiling through my tears...but that was Sophie...you could not do anything other than smile in her presence... I miss her and it will be strange visiting and her not being there...but we WILL visit and look forward to seeing you here when rules allow. Mel and Sy xxx

It is my privilege to be able to say that Sophie and I have been good friends for 55 years. I have so many memories of happy times, adventures, experiences and precious shared moments. Not least among them the many nights when, as teenagers, we stayed up late talking, sharing our own "take" on the world as we saw it then. Sophie had great insight and her own very wise way of looking at things. Quietly competitive, she had great strength but also a gentle and generous nature. I am very lucky to be among her friends. I am sure she has found the place she has earned in paradise