Ian and Gilly, I can identify with you as well. Before my dad's funeral my mum hadn't seen her older brother for 20 years - not since their mum's funeral. He lives in Solihull and we're in Coventry so distance wasn't a problem, it's just that there's 15 years between my mum and her brother so they didn't really have anything in common. We only recently found out that he'd lost his wife to Motor Neurone Disease in February. Fortunately, mum has a sister who lives in Scotland and she's the matriarch of the family, but now she's had a stroke so we're all in close contact with her side. One thing to come out of all this is I now have my cousin's mobile number and email address, so we can chat whenever we have the time (not easy - I have an autistic teenager and she has 2 young girls).
Sorry for rambling so much, i'm making the most of actually having the computer all to myself for once. My point (yes there was one!) is that no matter what contact you have with your family, everyone on this forum is there for each other. We're the lucky ones having such a valuable resource at our fingertips. Take care,
Bubsy