When Dad Died

Morag MacInnes

Well he was always an awkward rambunctious kinda bugger, an atheist in a town full of Wee Frees, a socialist in a county full of farming Liberals (they're worse than non farming ones), the first O U graduate in a world full of pulled-myself-up-by-my-bootstrappers. He died walking backwards, just to see if he could do it, having discovered that he could - again - walk frontwards, despite the hospital infections. Typical. Fell over and hit his head and died trying.

I saw him in the morning; I took the dog as usual into the Old Folks Home. Aye aye, said Vivian, thu'r here fur Ian, Aye, I said, me and Ivy. ... (continues)