Dearest Friends, Tuesday was one of the saddest and most distressing days I’ve had to endure when I lost my dear dad to cancer. He battled with this dreaded illness for the last ten months, as some of you may know. For those of you who met him, you will know that he was unique, very loveable and had an incredible sense of humour. For those of you who didn’t – you missed out. My dad was generous to a hilt - always giving, and would always want to give you the food on his plate if you happened to visit during dinnertime. He was a craftsman in his profession as a shoemaker and for many years, he worked for John Lobb, St James St. London. He did shoes for the likes of Prince Charles, Tina Turner, Peter Falk (Colombo), Donald Sutherland and Margaret Thatcher to name but a few. When he was in his teens and already an established cobbler, at the end of the week he would bring a tin box home and empty his takings (together with bits of rubber and leather, typical dad) onto the kitchen table for his mother. He would keep only 2 shillings for himself. His priority in life was always to make people smile, no matter what and one of his mottos was: whatever happens in life, always remember to smile. Daddy was a music lover. He was an inspiration to me and sang with his own band in his youth and beyond. It was because of him, and his wonderful passion for music, that I began a career in this industry. He always sang to me and from the age of 3 years old, he would place a microphone in front of me and tell me to ‘sing’. Last Friday, I was due to fly back to the UK for work. This was an agonising decision for me as I did not want to leave his bedside. However, he insisted I went and he told me to ‘Go for it’, as he always did. These were his last words to me. He was a humble, endearing man with a huge zest for life, as well as a performer and a true entertainer. Even on BBC’s ‘Over The Rainbow’ online poll, ‘Nana and Nanu’ won ‘Best Grandparents’!!!. monkseal.wordpress/2010/05/17/over-the-rainbow-week-8-pt-1-4-perform/ (week 8 part 1 bottom page). There were times, I’ll admit, he played the typical, embarrassing dad. In public places, he would walk into lampposts (deliberately of course), and at times to my mortification, break into opera involuntarily. Looking back, I wish I could watch him walk into a lamppost just one more time. We went to extraordinary lengths to try and keep him with us for as long as possible, and I believe we did achieve this to some extent. I do feel extremely blessed that I had him around for so long and that my children were able to spend much precious time with him. I’m certainly going to miss the words ‘Hello sweetheart’, which he said to me often, and to lots of other ladies too!:) My father was very special and he was one of a kind. There has never been anyone quite like him and it’s almost certain there never will be. Daddy, you touched the hearts of everyone you ever met. I will cherish the memories and the love that you gave me forever. Look over us, keep singing and clowning around… this time with the angels. I’m going to miss you incredibly and life will never be the same again... Rest in peace, I love you.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 22:35:51 +0000
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