Tuesday 13th October

Dad wanted to go to the shop yesterday to buy his birthday present! The shop is about 5 minutes walk and it is the only place he walks to safely. We have an account so he never has to pay and they send him home if he has already been for the bread and milk. They are very kind to him as are most of the neighbours. We have lived at xxxxxx for 50 years and dad is very well known.

This is a godsend when he wanders because people bring him home. On occasions he has gone into one of the nearby houses and sat in their living room thinking it is his own. It must be a shock to find an old man sitting in your house, more often than not fast asleep. Even though he is little unsteady on his feet at times we don't discourage him from going out. However, there have been times when he has fallen over, it is a risk we take.

Last night I went out to a History lecture and when I returned Dad insisted that he had been out too, he hadn't. I suggested he go to bed so he patted one of the cushions and said "well, what about this fella here then." Whoever 'this fella' is he occupies a big part on dad's settee. We will have to give him a name.

We have recently found out that dad's father was probably Canadian, coming over to the UK in the 2nd WW. His grandparents were married in HH and then emigrated to Canada. Their son came back and married dad's mother. He was a hairdresser and had a shop on the high street,

Unfortunately grandfather and father had the same names which makes it a little difficult to identify documents. I have found his parents' grave they died 9 years apart but on the same day.