My Aunt Wendy passed away yesterday, 13th February 2011 at her home in Adelaide.
Of course I knew I had family out in Australia but it wasn’t until my mother passed away in 2004 that I had any real contact with any of them.
In 1960 my fathers younger brother John, his wife Wendy and their five young children emigrated to Adelaide. After they landed we didn’t have much contact at all. Telephone calls were out of the question, I tried writing but it came to nothing. When I was older I wanted to go out there on the £10.00 passage but I couldn’t make contact. Years later I found out that my Uncle and Aunt had divorced. Anyway…
When mum passed away we began to trace the family tree and I found an address for my cousin, Wendy’s eldest daughter. I wrote to her, she replied and we have kept in touch ever since.
I had some lovely e-mail contact with my aunt over the last few years. Her e-mail address was skysearcher which I just loved! Imagine thinking of that name, I wish I had.
When I rang her, she used to laugh when I said ‘hello Aunt Wendy’, I was the only person in the world that called her that.
Thank you Wendy for all the e-mails, the conversation and the beautiful letters that you & my mother exchanged. They were so special. Now is not the time and this is not the place to write about them but they mended a relationship and built bridges.
Rest in peace skysearcher.

a lovely memory