Nell

Today was very much a day of mixed emotions.  My uncle died very suddenly last Saturday and this was his funeral.  I left early this morning and after picking up my Mum's cousin, Lydia (she lives very near me and is eighty-two) travelled through to Lanarkshire.   The church was packed, standing room only, as he was the Session Clerk there and often held the service himself if there was no minister available.  He also had a lot of friends in the bowling club and country dancing scene, and of course a lot of relatives.

On the way home, Lydia and I popped in to visit her elder brother, Johnny.  I love to hear all his stories.  He left school aged thirteen and a half (during the war) and his first job was a lambing for a local farm.  He subsequently worked as a "hird" all his days and also built up his own flock of sheep.  Earlier this year he lost his wife and had a couple of nasty falls so gave up his sheep and retired from "hirding" at eighty-nine.  That means he spent over seventy-five years looking after sheep!

The blip is of his sheep-dog, Nell, who is a lovely Border Collie.  She is a one-man dog - more than happy to accept attention and cuddles from me, but if Johnny spoke or moved, all her attention was on him.  They still have friends with sheep who let him work Nell now and again as she is at her happiest among sheep.