The reason for our recent trip up to Scotland was to scatter my dad’s ashes. He had asked that they be scattered in the same beautiful bit of wild moorland near our home town of Strathaven where my mum’s ashes were scattered a couple of years ago.

As we drove up the M74 I was remembering all of the motorbike trips that Dad and I used to do up and down that motorway on our way to France and back. I was also reminded of the hills that we climbed together, Blencathra, The Merrick, and Tinto.

Mollie and I went up in the van and met my sister and her two children there. It was a lovely sunny afternoon when we arrived and it was great to be able to show Mollie around my old home town including Strathaven Park which is really pretty and has a toy train and a paddling pool, all of which I clearly remember. In fact we have a photograph of my mum and a friend of hers who came out from Glasgow on the bus when she was I guess in her twenties so Strathaven Park has been a day out destination for a long time. 

We were very lucky to grow up in such a nice little town and when I was scattering dad’s ashes I said thank you both to him and to mum. Like all parents they weren’t perfect but they for sure tried their hardest and my sister and I both benefited from their efforts. 

What was lovely was that, just as we were about to scatter dad’s ashes, and then again just after we had done so, two groups of motorbikes went screaming past on the fantastic winding road which used to be one of dad’s favourites on his motorbike. It was like a fly past salute and felt very special.