Losing a parent is something the majority of us have to deal with at one time or another – a really common event but not one many people feel prepared for even if it’s expected.  When my father died – 19 years ago now – it was so sudden and a shock for us all.  It was pretty difficult to compute and move on.  We had just a few weeks’ warning with my mother, who sadly died on Friday, but I can’t say the family was any better prepared.  Everybody needs to grieve in their own way and it’s so important to find that way for oneself but one thing I do know is that the grieving process is enhanced by remembrance and I plan to store up a heap of memories to draw on in my retirement years.  My mother marked her 90th birthday in hospital  a few weeks’ ago with a timely visit from a palliative nurse but she still managed to read all her cards and letters from friends and raise a glass and share some special time with her close family and, I think, knowing it was the beginning of her farewell to us all.