there is no death, but only change

This weekend I lost my lovely uncle to bowel cancer. He'd only been diagnosed two months ago, so the whole thing seems so overwhelming and bitterly unfair. Worse still, my granny died five weeks ago, so my auntie lost her husband and her mother within a matter of weeks of each other. 

I'm filled with gratitude that I have such a wonderful family, though. I have so many beautiful memories of the summers I spent with my granny and uncle over in Northern Ireland. I owe them my love of the countryside and my knowledge of nature. Whenever I potter around my little garden, tying up climbing vines or dead-heading spent flowers, I feel like my granny is speaking to me. And she always taught me that death is part of life, that nothing will grow without the rain.