My Mother's diary.

 When my sister Anne died, Alison--her daughter-- came into possession of a small diary that my Mother had kept--intermittently-- over the course of several years. In addition to conventional diary entries, there were many other entries of a non-diary character: recipes, lists of Wimbledon tennis players, sums covering the costs of groceries, inspiring texts she had copied from books, comments on her serious reading (The Brothers Karazamov/ Dr. Zhivago), three poems that I had written when I was eighteen years old--she must have found them in an old school exercise book, and much else.

But what touched me most, were the entries concerning Juliet. The first was indirect--just the address of the Starr family in Grand Junction Colorado.

Then, on March 28th: "Anne came down quite early--we were still in bed. David had telephoned at about 3.30am to say that Juliet had been killed in a car crash." and then "March 30th, Easter Monday, funeral--David, Eva, Rachel, and Daniel."

And there was more about a phone call from me describing what had happened to Richard Starr--"his hand had been stitched back, but three fingers will be useless." Later, on June 16th, it was noted that his hand had been amputated. ("Poor Boy").

On March 27, 1980, the entry reads. "Darling Juliet, 1959--1978. Unheard, unseen, but always near--Grannie XX."

And the next year, 1981: "Dear Juliet 1959--1978. 'Grieve not that she is gone, rather rejoice that she ever was. Ever with us. Grannie XXX. Not forgetting her lovely baby. XXX.'

March 27, 1982 "Dear Juliet---most lovingly remembered today and always--not forgetting her little baby. Grannie and Grandad XXXXXX."

And the last entry; March 27 1983: "Dear Juliet and Baby. Always in our thoughts."