Gone With The Birds

Tito David has gone up the sky.

We told Isaac when he found his mother in inconsolable tears one morning in the middle of what would have been an ordinary school day.

At the tender age of four, he already knew what it meant to lose a beloved. A few months after we left our home in Spain, his four-legged friend Vince was put down to sleep. We told him that he was too old and tired so he went up the sky. It was autumn, the leaves were falling and he pointed out that they have died, "like Vince". But the reality only hit him once he visited Spain and his friend was no longer there. Because being up the sky means he will never see him again.

So when we told him about Tito David he had an idea of what it meant.

"Is it because he's 100 years old?", was the first thing he asked. He wasn't very well, we said and reminded him that when he goes back to Spain, Tito will no longer be there because he has gone to be with Vince. "Lola Mum will be sad because she's on her own now", he noted.

In the short time that they had each other, Tito David gave Isaac the best present he could have ever asked for. Time and plenty of memories. Of early morning trips to the bus stop in Guardiaro waiting for the school bus to come. Of long afternoons spent dipping in the cool waters of Costa del Sol in the summer we lived in Spain. Of hours spent by the Rio Guadaranque watching birds with binoculars at the weekends. Of many trips to 'Tito's Pub' for an evening drink while dinner is getting ready at home. Of enjoyable games of trying to outwit each other and passing away time. Of Norwich City vs Sheffield Wednesday. Of Tito's laughs, of Tito's hugs, of Tito's warmth.

While every death is painful, thoughts about the days and years that could have been lived and enjoyed makes it more tragic. And yet we know that as long as we remember, the people we love will continue to live in our hearts.

Tito David has now flown with the birds he loved to watch, and every time we look up the sky, we will think of him and smile.