My Tribute to my beloved Hannah that I read at her funeral..

This is the hardest thing I have ever had to write.  Simply because there is not enough time or words to convey what Hannah meant to me and how she was such a huge happy part of our family.  Every time words reach paper, they just don’t seem to fit or convey the message of just how much we love her, which is so so much for more than a trillion different reasons.

Hannah, I have always been proud of everything that you have done although every time I told you I was proud of you, you burst into tears.  This always happened until we all watched an episode of family guy together and since then, telling you I was proud produced laughter.  Proud o you!

I could never sit near the front the room for any of your school plays at Oaklands, Dean Row or Dean Oaks school because if we made eye contact, even for a single second, we would both start laughing, this happened every year from infants all the way through to Juniors, no matter where I sat your little face would hunt me down and we would share a chuckle.

You were always so thoughtful about everybody around you, when your friends called, you used to run to their houses or spend hours on the phone to them.  You would have done anything for your friends and family which is just one of the reasons, even though you are still so young, you have touched so many lives. 

You had a knack of knowing how to make people laugh, you loved granddad John’s silly jokes and came home laughing and telling me them, they still made me laugh even though I had heard them a million times before.  Your sense of humour was fantastic, you could take a joke and I often picked you up from places only to laugh all the way home.  I loved to hear you and Ben roaring with laughter from your bedroom or the back garden and you and Phil laughing, happily arguing in the living room together.

You had the most beautiful hazel coloured eyes that changed colour every day, you washed, dried and straightened your hair every single day.  I loved it when you would come in to give me a kiss or hug before you went to school or before you went to bed and I could smell your clean hair in my face.

I tried to dress you in girly clothes but you never seemed comfortable, even when you were really small.  I gave up in the end and you lived in jeans, tops and trainers or should I say, Super dry shirt, chino’s, Hollister hoody, red vans and one of your silly hats.

You were so strong willed, I don’t know if I told you I was proud that you would not go on any of the rollercoasters we tried to coax/bully/force you onto.  You were clever enough to queue with us to make us think you would go on, and then when we got to the front you would step through the ride and wave us off laughing. 

You had the devoted men in your life wrapped around your little finger.  Grandad John, Grandad James and Phil would drop everything for you to come and collect you and drop you off anywhere you wanted, you didn’t ask me as often because you knew I would tell you off for being disorganised or forgetful

Phil, Ben, You and I did something together every weekend whether it was take the dog for a walk, have a day out or just sit and watch TV.  It was pretty much guaranteed that if we went for a walk and you wore wellies you would get one stuck. 

You played the Piano beautifully, both Phil and I are so so proud of you for this.  You learnt a song to play for me and a song to play for Phil, one of which we walked into church to and one of which you did a duet with Phil too, you spent a lot of time teaching yourself new songs from You Tube in addition to the pieces that Grandma gave you to learn.  We would sing along in the conservatory to the songs that we knew and laugh because we were all rubbish and didn’t know all the words.

I could talk and talk and talk all day about all the wonderful things you achieved in your short 14 years.  I could talk and talk and talk about the hopes and dreams you had for the future of university, sharing a flat, skiing with Lucy and travelling.  

You would not have wanted any of us to be sad and if you were here you would be offering cups of tea and hugs.  You always saw the best in everyone and everything and we all owe it to you to get through this and be the best people than we can possibly be.

No words will ever portray the extent of how much I absolutely love you and how you meant everything to me, you are my only daughter and best friend and no matter what we do, where we go, you will be forever in mine and Phil’s heart.