You can't take it with you when you're gone

A pretty tea set. Perhaps we should use crockery and cutlery meant for special occasions as often as possible. Photo: Filepic

About a year ago, I made friends with an elderly woman who lives on the same street as me. I didn’t know it at the time, but she would change my life in a number of different ways.

I had just returned from an evening jog and was leaning against the outside wall of my apartment block, trying to catch my breath, when I first saw Anne (not her real name). She was hobbling along the pavement towards me, a heavy shopping bag in each hand.