Boxing Day with the Rennies

James, Ally, Davie and I travelled through to Abigail and Graeme’s today for Boxing Day lunch. Today would have been my lovely Uncle Bill’s 83rd birthday had he not died in October. If he had lived to be 83 he would have lived a longer life than both of his parents as well as all of his siblings, however his mother (my grandmother) was slightly older than him when she died. I will always remember Bill’s distinctive and very pleasant voice; his speech often punctuated with a little laugh on the intake of breath. We all missed him at the lunch, and he was mentioned often throughout the meal, but it was still a very upbeat, happy afternoon. As well as Abigail and Graeme, Katy, Janie and Julie were there. Robert should have been there but is unwell, in fact he was in hospital last week. It was good for Ally and Davie to spend time with some of the Rennie side of the family in a small group to get to know them better, because they usually see them in a cast of thousands at larger family occasions. I was proud of both of them, they were charming and polite. Julie (who is a physiotherapist) warned me that I have been doing too much with my broken wrist and said that I should wear my wrist support more. I have been lifting and carrying casserole dishes and trays of food and drink a great deal over Christmas; James would have done this for me if I had asked, but he was also busy serving and carrying food, so rather than wait for him I would just do it myself, which with hindsight was foolish: my wrist is now sorer than it was when the cast was taken off. I have resolved to be more careful.

Abigail’s house is warm and inviting, which is just as well because it was cold and dreich outside, and a convivial family lunch was an excellent way to spend the afternoon.