We were up a bit early in order to escort Mum to Narita. I decided that rather than drag Mum through the onslaught of officeworkers that is Tamachi before 9am, we would splash out on a taxi to Shinagawa. Every time I use the NEX (Narita Express) it feels a little quicker - maybe because Emily is older and easier to cope with each time! Mum spotted a few cherries in bloom along the way and I was pleased; I am so disappointed that she missed out on hanami as that was the main reason for picking the dates we did, but if the trip was any later then it would have been obvious that Grandad was about to die and of course she would have cancelled anyway.
Thanks to a long check-in queue, we didn't get to spend any time with Mum before we had to part. There was just time for a hasty goodbye - on reflection maybe it was better that way - then I had to whisk Emily back down to our NEX train as we had already bought tickets for the return journey. I wondered what it is like to know that you won't ever see your parent again (not being one who believes in the afterlife) and if anyone ever really gets to say all that they want, or indeed, should, say.
I had left the buggy at home, so we walked home in light rain from Tamachi. All the puddles along the way were predictably splashed in. We stayed at home in the afternoon but had to stock up. By the time we went out to shop at 5pm the temperature had dropped to a bitter 3C and it was raining heavily, so weatherwise at least, Mum was fortunate.
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