When a family member is sick they consume your thoughts.
So I feel for The Queen now Prince Philip is in hospital recovering from a heart operation.
She loves him so he must be on her mind constantly.
The Queen really shouldn’t have anything else on her mind right now and responding to Harry and Meghan’s claims in her Oprah Winfrey interview is the last thing she needs - especially because by the sound of the trailers, they’re going to drop some bombshells.
I wish the interview would be postponed until Prince Philip recovers.
They may be a royal family, but they’re still a family with feelings.
All the hullabaloo makes Kate and William seem even nicer. I reckon if Kate popped in to see me, I could say: “Get the kettle on and let’s have a cup of tea” and she’d give me a lovely smile and ask if I’d like one sugar or two
She seems beautifully royal yet also perfectly friendly.
I’d still dunk my Rich Tea in my cup if Kate was here. And I reckon she might be a dunker too.
But I bet she doesn’t leave her biscuit in as long as me so it drops to the bottom and has to scraped out with a spoon. Now that’s class.
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My mum always said: “If you have a mother, cherish her with care because you will never know her value until you see her empty chair.”
And that’s true. I lost my mum a year after my husband Colin. I cherished her every minute and miss her every day.
We were best friends and she made me laugh like no other. She’d think it was the funniest thing ever that I have a newspaper column and she’d have tried to take it over.
We were so close, we could go shopping separately and buy each other exactly the same gift or card. And if we had an attack of the giggles, we might be bent double for a good half hour.
My mum was like my boys’ second mum. When Jonathan and Robert went to her house for a sleepover they treated her house like their own. Mum would tell me to enjoy a nice lie in the next day. But when our Robert screwed up an old newspaper in to a ball and kept kicking it off her pantry walls, she added: “Don’t leave the lie in too long.”
Mum had a sixth sense whenever me and Colin had a row. We’d be doing our absolute best to speak to each other normally and disguise any frostiness, and she’d say: “What’ve you buggers been rowing about now, then?”. She always said it was my fault because I was mouthy and Colin was placid - and she was right.
Mum instinctively knew if I hadn’t stretched the weekly budget out enough and would turn up at my door with bag full of meat from the butcher.
And she’s the only one who could say things to me very straight. I put on weight after having my son Jonathan, and more again with Robert, and she said: “Our Val, you look all right from the front. But you look like a big duck waddling from the back.”
I took myself to WeightWatchers because I trusted I’d been told the truth by someone only with my best interests at heart.
So although there are adverts for Mother’s Day all over the place, no mum I know really minds what gift they might receive on the day. What means much more is just knowing, every day, that they are loved.
My readers keep loneliness at bay
I’m lucky in lockdown because if ever I feel a pang of loneliness I open my memory box where I keep all the letters from you - I like to call you friends, not just readers. Within minutes I’m smiling and wishing I could meet each one of you for a coffee, a chat and a great big laugh.
Special thanks must go to Elsie from Wellingborough who made me a little bag to help keep my mobile with me at all times. It has footballers on the material and Elsie even sent instructions on how I should use it. It’s so thoughtful, as now my phone won’t slide from inside my waistband to my knickers again.
Huge thanks also to Carol from Norwich, whose husband drew a colouring book of birds that’s so beautiful I don’t want to colour it in case I spoil it. What a talent he has.
And to Pauline from Upminster, I cannot thank you enough for your picture frame which came at just the right time as Colin’s ninth anniversary is near. I say hello to the picture every morning.
Thank you all for keeping my chin up.
Counting down the days to hugs
I’ve been working on my hug list since March last year, so now I’ve started to think in great detail about not just who I want to cuddle when it’s safe to embrace, but exactly how I’d like the cuddles to be.
Robert’s eldest son Charlie is 17 and before lockdown he started giving me a hugs with pats on the back.
I’m not having that.
I told him I need him to open his arms wide, wrap them around me and not let go.
My only worry is hugging him so tight he might have no breath left.
TV is a saviour in lockdown
Weekends can feel a bit of a non event in lockdown. But now Gogglebox is back on Friday nights they start with a lift and a laugh.
I’d happily move in with the families, and maybe my first choice would be the Malones in Manchester because they always have the best cakes on their coffee table: tarts, Swiss rolls and plump iced buns.
As they watched the government announcement about restrictions ending on June 21, dad Tom said to his wife Julie: “What day is that? A Monday. I’m booking the Tuesday off work.”
I howled to think of him running straight to the pub to have a skinful. It’s so funny and refreshing to see such down to earth people on telly.
Don’t miss
I adore Jenny and Lee in their caravan. My son Jonathan insists Jenny’s just like me because she says things back to front. Whenever she’s on screen he tells his daughter Caitlin: “There’s Nana”.
I’ve set the series to record so I can re-watch an episode if ever I feel a little dip in my mood. At least I think I’ve set it to record but sometimes my smart TV is a bit too smart for me.
I’ve had a few letters from blokes asking me to start a campaign for Tena Ladies for men. Is there a need? I am too scared to ask anyone I know.
If you’d like to contact Val, email features@mirror.co.uk or write to Val Savage, PO Box 7290, E14 5DD