I’m back from my trip to Newcastle for my Aunty Betty’s funeral. Thank you all for your lovely messages.

You might be surprised when you read this, but I had a wonderful time. I’m incredibly sad my Aunty Betty is no longer here, but at the same time grateful for her wonderful life and knowing she is not suffering any more. She was a very special person and I lived with her for a long time when I was small and over the years she has always been there for me and the rest of the family. It was lovely to spend time with my cousins and last living Uncle and remember all the wonderful things about her life. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster of emotions, but on the whole the feeling is good.

I have a huge extended family. On my mother’s side there were 10 brothers and sisters and many of them had children, so I’ve lots of cousins. Aunty Betty was a pivotal force within the family, always there to pick up pieces in times of crisis and always to be relied upon when it was party time. Until she was about 78, last year, she looked after her 3 grandchildren every weekend. She was amazing.

I thought I’d share the photo above with you. It was taken on the night of the funeral. That’s me, with my cousin Billy, who was Aunty Betty’s middle son and his daughter, April. That’s his dog as well, Hiedi, she’s 8 months old and very friendly.

I have a question for you – if Billy is my cousin, what relationship is April to me? April and I have discussed it many times over the years but don’t know the answer, we’d like it to be something special.