Funeral

What a day! What could have been a day of tears and sadness was transformed into a day of pure joy with all the family and friends who came to His Lordship’s funeral to celebrate his life with me and his daughter, my stepdaughter. He would have been amazed at the number of people who made it to Mortonhall to fill the Main Chapel. It transformed the day, and how Sandy would have loved it. Of course there were moments when the tears were present but the sheer emotional uplifting of the congregation dispelled them. There was laughter as well as Ann, daughter # 2 and his walking companion all spoke about the man he was to them.

I was especially moved to see fellow blippers in the congregation- Barrioboy from Barcelona, Ms Gable from deepest darkest Yorkshire, Marchmont from Marchmont and JustSitting from Edinburgh.
There were our cycling friends from Felixstowe, every part of Edinburgh and the Lothians and family from as far afield as Bath, and Fort William not forgetting Paisley! There were people who had flown in this morning from Cork and Bristol, all for a man who was reticent in company to say the least but who engendered respect and loyalty.
We repaired to the Braid Hills Hotel for the kind of gathering Sandy would have so loved but would have hated had he had to be present. He would have stayed in the background seeing that everyone had enough to drink.
I can’t thank everyone present enough for making the day a day of celebration rather than one of sadness.

The family came back to the Dower House in droves afterwards and it was utter chaos, but happy chaos with grandchildren seeing each other in the same space for the first time in ages and making the most of it.
Wine was served, crisps were eaten by the bagful, followed by pizzas and salad and I did not have to lift a finger.
What a day, and we did you proud Sandy!