How do I write a tribute to you, Dad. It will be some time before I can quite believe I am having to. Clearly there are not enough words to express how much we all loved you and how much you will be missed so I will focus on the incredible sunshine, calm and warmth you brought in to my life and everyone that knew you. As a child, I grew up watching you and Mum and seeing how much you clearly adored each other and what a fantastic couple you were. It took some years before I realised that what you had was so rare and so very special. I remember some years ago, probably about ten years ago, me and Jamie were having dinner with you and Mum at the house in Droxford - probably your fantastic Chinese - and we were going round the table talking about what we wanted to achieve in our lives. To be honest, I can't remember what anyone else said that evening but I remember so clearly what you said. It really touched me and has stayed with me forever. You said, "I am very lucky because all I ever wanted to achieve in life was to meet a great woman, get married and have two great children and I have already achieved that". You meant every word and I remember being so humbled by what you said. You had truly found contentment already. Something so few people find in their lives. You never wanted for much, actually. You were always the hardest person to buy birthday and Christmas presents for. Not because you were difficult or fussy but because you already had everything you needed and wanted. What do you buy a man who already had everything they wanted? A pair of socks, it turns out. You were always very grateful and said something like, "Perfect, I needed more socks". I remember growing up and thinking, if I can find someone to share my life with and have even half the happiness and love that you and Mum have, I will be very content with that. It took me a while to find it but I am delighted to let you know that I did. I know you saw that when you were still here and were so happy that I found Ron and that between us, we made a great little person who we and you are and were so, so proud of. You kept asking me when Ron was going to make an honest woman of me. I know it mattered to you that we got married (mostly from a financial stability point of view of course!) and as I held your hand when you were unable to speak to us, I think you said "Sorry". I didn't hear it right at the time and thought you had said, "sad". How annoyed you must have been that I hadn't heard you but I hear you, Daddy. I know you were saying you were sorry that you wouldn't be there to walk me down the aisle but you don't need to be sorry. You will be there with me by my side every step of the way and I won't allow your lack of physical presence to be a thing of sadness on that day. The fact that we were lucky enough to have you at all will be a thing of happiness. We have talked about many things over the last couple of days. We have said how you were a man of few words, but that in a few words, you could say so much. Only a few months ago, after an initial struggle with Motherhood, you cuddled me in my kitchen and said, "You're doing a good job, you know" and did something like pat me on the head. I knew I had made you proud. I know you have always been proud of all three of us. We hear motivational phrases and statements all the time. Most of the time, they wash over me with no impact but you had a way of holding back and allowing Jamie and I to live our lives, make our own mistakes and learn from them but when the time was right, in a few words, you would say something that made a huge impact and helped guide us on the right path. One of my favourite bits of Daddy advice (a piece I have shared with so many people as it fits so many circumstances) was when I was working at Oxigen all those many years ago. It was one of the earlier jobs in my career and not one of my better ones but after several months of being told we might not get paid, I needed to work out what I was going to do. I remember e-mailing you and saying I just didn't know what I should do or what the right decision was. You simply wrote back this: "In life, Natalie, there is no such thing as a right or wrong decision. All that matters is that you make a decision and you make it work for you." I cannot tell you how many times in my life I have turned to that advice and felt at complete peace with the decision I had made because I knew you were right. There were no rights or wrongs. Life was about making the best of the situation you found yourself in. Something you did until the very end. We have spoken so much over the past couple of days about how cruel it is that your life ended so early and how unfair it was but we have also recognised that you had a really great life that was so full of love, energy, great friends and just overriding happiness and how actually, there was nothing more you wanted for in life than what you already had. You truly were content. We could have wished nothing more for you. Strangely, when my good friend Shirley died a couple of months ago. I remember sitting in the garden and thinking about life and what I would change if I could and I remember thinking, not a thing. I remembered your hopes for yourself and felt so blessed that you had passed on the ability to feel the same way to me. I said to myself that I did feel truly content. I have an amazing family and whilst, of course, there are things that could be improved, like my job, they really weren't that big a deal. The big things were all good and I feel content. This, of course was when you were still here but as devastated as I am, I still feel content with my life and that that was your biggest gift to me. Thank you. I obviously know the enormous way you have touched my life but what has been so humbling over the past few days is hearing and reading about how much you touched the lives of everyone you met. Everyone has a story of something you did for them. Quietly, never asking for acknowledgement, thanks or praise or ever needing it. It was just the way you were. You saw the best in everyone and never judged, you just got a huge amount of satisfaction from doing what you could to help others. We talked about how sad it was that you couldn't read all the tributes and know how loved you were and how much you touched everyone's lives but we realise that it wouldn't actually have made any difference because you didn't need that recognition or praise. I have never met anyone else like you and for the rest of my life, Daddy, I will miss you, but for the rest of my life, I will be so grateful and feel so blessed to have had you, the most awesome man in the world, as my Dad. You did good, Dad, you did good. With love always, Natalie. xxx P.S. I hope you are having fun up there in the 'Magic Kingdom'