A sad shock

I was awakened at ten past seven this morning with the news of the sudden death of Margaret Kemp, St John's most recent nongenarian and Tea Room doyenne, whose birthday celebration was only a week last Saturday. She'd had the cast taken off her mended broken foot last Monday, and the long experience of waiting around in the hospital had left her feeling less buoyant than when she went in.

Yesterday, Pauline who'd visited her in the week said she was still looking unwell. Marion rang to tell me how she'd gone into hospital yesterday afternoon when she was admitted to E&R, and she'd been suffering back pain. They'd stayed together until nine, and left Margaret resting, but the hospital had rung to say she'd died earlier on. She was a youthful and vigorous ninety year old. It's going to be a terrible shock to everyone who knows her, as she was pretty fit and in good health, apart from having broken those bones in her foot.

Tom and Marilyn arrived just after lunch to accompany us to the opera tonight - Mozart's 'Seragio'. Having spent time in the morning phoning around the sad news, then making booklets of this year's Lent Talks, I was glad of the respite. I saw the opera many years ago, I didn't remember the music, so it was refreshing and delightful. It was Tom's first ever opera. I think he was smitten.