A deeply moving testimony to the importance of making the most of every precious moment together

TEDDY Jamieson's compelling essay on dealing with the recent death of his wife – clearly his best friend and closest confident too – makes for insightful if disquieting reading ("What survives of you is love. That's why this hurts so much", Herald Magazine, January 25) and should send a message to all of us – and certainly those of a certain age whose mortality is a clear and present danger – that life is for living in the present tense and that the very most must be extracted from it, especially in appreciating and treasuring the living, breathing relationships of those closest to us for as long as they can possibly last.

Away from the vapid, make-believe world of social media of "Friends" and "Likes", out here in the real world, there is space for one, and certainly no more than two of the deep and meaningful relationships Mr Jamieson and his wife Jean had clearly enjoyed.

That he has continued to contribute creatively to the pages of the newspapers since the death of the love-of-his-life only last October is quite remarkable, his emotive and emotional essay must have been as difficult to compose as it was tough to consume, but perhaps it was cathartic for him?

As someone with a similarly seminal relationship dating back to 1974, with a half-century hopefully – but not certainly – on the horizon, the fear of the loss of such a singular soul-mate is as terrifying as it is a grim reminder that none of us is immortal.

Mr Jamieson's words, distressing, depressing yet heart-warming and reassuring in equal measure should serve as a reminder to us all that, whilst nothing is forever, for as long as a relationship like theirs – and mine – exists and thrives, it is vitally important to make the very most of it, making certain to express one's true emotions, to

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