ALWAYS BY MY SIDE

Lyn Hetherington, 58, didn't want to walk down the aisle with anyone else

- FRANCES LEATE

Bouncing around my living room, Eva, my new black Labrador pup, wagged her tail furiously. ‘She looks about to take off,’ my eldest, Gemma, then 17, laughed.

It was September 2013 and Eva was my new guide dog. I’d been born with coloboma, a condition where my eyes hadn’t developed properly in the womb. I had a small window of vision, like looking through a keyhole and could just make out large objects and some colours.

I’d always managed, but after separating from my husband, and with Gemma and my youngest, Penny, then 15, busy with their own lives, I was spending more time at home alone.

I had plenty of friends, but not the confidence to go out alone. That’s why I’d contacted the Guide Dogs charity and they’d matched me with Eva.

‘Things are about to get better,’ I thought, as the black furry pup leapt about.