One of my favourite things about Omi was her joy of talking about boys and gossip! I remember the first thing she would always ask me is "so, do you have a boyfriend?" (Omi, I'm 9!) or in later years, the delighted "so tell me, how is your boyfriend, I want to know everything".
She was really special to me in this way as she was genuinely interested and it seemed that I could talk to her about anything. She was never judgemental or patronising. She would really listen, and being that I lived in a house of boys, it was great to steal those moments with my secret co-conspirator.

Once when I was staying with her whilst working in London, I confided about someone that I had met at university up in Leeds. She listened for hours, wanting to know every detail. She decided that the two of us were clearly in love and so must be together at all costs!! She told me that I should go and visit him in Leeds and tell him how I feel. I was far too scared of that and tried to laugh it off - but she would not be deterred. The next day, I returned from work to find a train ticket to Leeds that she had bought for me for the coming weekend - it was decided, I was going! 

I laugh when I remember this because I wasn't used to that sort of attitude, but it was so full of kindness and a genuine excitement that I might find love. Compared to how I was raised, Omi had a liberation to her that I really admired and even envied!
We talked so much whilst I was living with her and I loved to hear her own stories of people that she had met in her life. She knew how to live and love, and I think that's such a rich and sadly rare attitude.
I will miss her greatly and I'm sure that wherever she is now, she's being swept off her feet by someone incredibly dashing !

Much love xx