A sad loss



We just found out that Valentina, a brilliant, lively presence in Mollie's residence has died. She had a fall last week and was taken to hospital. While she was there, unexpectedly, she died, and everyone at the nursing home is bereft. Val was certainly demented. Every time I'd turn up with Nessie in tow, she'd as, 'What's his name?' Her conversation was limited to some clearly defined areas, and she had well developed ways of signalling when limits were reached. She had a wonderful, lively intelligence. She may have been a professional singer at one time – she said to me once, 'You know I used to do that, don't you? Just for a while,' and I believe her 'that' was something to do with singing. Peggy Lee's Why Don't You Do Right was one of her favourite numbers, sung with sultry innuendo that evoked a sultry but no-nonsense nightclub, probably somewhere in Darlinghurst. She was full of cheek. She loved the limelight. She danced (as here with the Stamperdowns, when she had just finished a show-stopping performance of 'Stormy Weather').



She was kind to other residents when they seemed miserable and punched them when they crossed or frustrated her. For all the good work done by staff, and for all her occasional crankiness, Valentina contributed more than any other individual to a high tone in the dementia wing. She presided over its dining room like a goddess, and it seems impossible that she's gone.

Posted: Sun - April 26, 2009 at 03:39 PM           |

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