In memoriam for Deirdre

Helena and I went with my sister Rosie to a memorial service for Deirdre in a small village in Devon today.

Deirdre was a very close school friend of our mother and they stayed friends till throughout their lives. Deirdre was Rosie's God-mother and as children we would meet up and play with Deirdre's children, Robert and Alexandra.

Today allowed all her family to be present at the service in the lovely church of Morchard Bishop, near where Deirdre lived with Robert on their farm. Alexandra lives in Sydney and couldn't come over for Deidre's funeral last autumn.

Helena rightly noted that todays service was one of the most fun and affectionate she had been to, with Robert actively involved in taking the service. One of her cousins told us a bit of her life story, and I had forgotten that during the second world war she was one of the women who recorded all the morse code messages at Bletchley Park, where the Enigma machine was finally cracked.

After the service all the visitors were invited back to the farm for tea and to wander round the beautiful gardens which Deirdre had designed and lovingly looked after. House martins were feeding overhead, returning with the food to their broods in their mud nests under the eaves of the old farmhouse. The garden was alive with insects, flowers, family and friends.

I spotted Benjamin, one of Deirdre's grandsons, as he was walking round the gardens with this man whom I don't know. I thought this was the best picture I took today.