This is a very special and incredibly personal episode of Time of My Life, which is dedicated to my nan, Edith Gullett, (or Nikki as she preferred to be known). As I mentioned in the first episode, I had an incredibly close relationship with my grandmother, and in fact, she was the person who inspired this podcast.

Unfortunately in early 2022, she passed away after a long period of sickness. However, I was lucky enough to record an early iteration of Time of My Life with her at the end of 2019, just before we were separated for a long period due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

After a very tough year of grieving, I've edited together some of her life stories, along with some snippets from our conversation, which have come as a great comfort to me in the past year.

I hope some of her words of wisdom can be as useful to you as they have been to me over the years, as it's without a doubt that she helped make me the man I am today.

The last time I spoke to my grandmother was on the phone on Christmas Day. I'm still not sure if she ever opened the presents I gave to her on Christmas Eve. I'm not sure it matters.

But as this time of year is all about family, I hope that you can each take the time to treasure the ones that you love, young and old, and ask those personal questions about their history, put down your phones and really connect, maybe even record it as I did.

Just make sure you make the time for quality time, although this loss has been heartwrenching to me, I've found solace in the fact I turned up and saw my nan numerous times over the years and in her final months. We didn't always know what to say, and sometimes the visits were hard, but I'll forever treasure that time, and I think you will too.

The last section of the podcast is a very raw and honest poem that I wrote on the day of my nan's cremation, which I've never posted publicly before, but my girlfriend felt that it was worth sharing.

Thank you for taking the time to listen, as always, it's very much appreciated, and I wish you - and your family - the very best Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year.

Laurence x __________________________________________

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