One of my earliest childhood memories is of meeting Lydia. It was February 1984, I was three years old and my parents held me up as I peered into the bassinet and into her big blue eyes.
‘Will she stay this little?’ I asked my mum, Vicky, then 30, as she cradled Lydia. Mum, and my dad, Malcolm, then 36, laughed. ‘No, but I’m sure you will always look after her, even when she’s big like you,’ Mum smiled. I was only little but I felt so proud. I’d just been given the most important job in the world. I was a big sister now.
Back home, I took my role very seriously, helping out with Lydia – who I called Lyd – as much as I could. As she got bigger, she’d sit next to me on the sofa watching Beauty and the Beast, and I’d hold her hands during the scary parts, reassuring her that it was OK, I was there.
When our parents split up, when I was 14 and Lyd 11, Mum took us to live with our grandparents. Sharing a bedroom, we lay awake for hours telling secrets about boys and gossiping about classmates.
We spent our teen years and early 20s lathering ourselves in fake tan and visiting each other at uni. Lyd became a glamorous, jet-setting lawyer, while I settled in Wakefield and got a job as a journalist.
But I was always hopping on a plane to visit my little sister, first in Abu Dhabi, then, later America, when she settled in Houston, Texas.
No matter the ocean between us, Lyd was my soulmate. We chatted daily in video calls, WhatsApp, Facebook messages and Instagram comments on each other’s photos.
Then, in November 2016, Lyd, then 32, travelled back home to Yorkshire to marry her husband Stu, 33, in a traditional country wedding in a church, with the reception at Goldsborough Hall, a beautiful stately home.
Esta historia es de la edición January 08, 2024 de WOMAN'S OWN.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición January 08, 2024 de WOMAN'S OWN.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
MY SON DIED HELPING OTHERS
Christine Parry is determined to continue her son's heroic work in Ukraine
I'M A MIDLIFE DADDY'S GIRL
Rachel Tompkins, 44, loves having a close relationship with her father
BECKHAMS' BUST-UPS
Posh and Becks are preparing to mark 25 years of marriage, but is all well in paradise?
DO VIRAL BEAUTY HACKS REALLY WORK?
Intrigued by hair and skincare advice trending on TikTok, Julie Cook, 46, decided to put it to the test
MEXICAN ONE-DISH DINNERS
Spice up midweek meals with these thrifty favourites
BANISH BINGO WINGS
Say 'hello' to sculpted arms this summer - just give these six easy moves a try
HOMELESS TO MILLIONAIRE
With her house repossessed and deep in depression, Caroline Strawson, 50, was determined to transform her life
THIS MORNING IN CRISIS!
Are new presenters Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard set to be replaced already?
MIND OF MY OWN
The Woman's Own columnist has her say on cooked brealdfasts, divorce and cleaning
GOING SOLO
Claire Waite Brown, 52, hadn't travelled alone for over 30 years