Cherish the young people in care systems of all kinds

Its 7th June, today is a day for remembering someone special. Every year on this day I visit the graveyard in a nearby village, I kneel beside a gravestone and I chat to my friend.  I think of his cheeky smile, broad accent, thick black hair and laughing eyes and I remember him. The day he died is etched in my memory you see. We were both patients in the same unit for treatment, he died there. I often think of him, especially when the sun is shining and today it is, as it was on that day, the day he left. Writing my memoir is such a cathartic journey, digging in to the past and breathing life back through it. But today, as I quieten my mind and close my eyes to the rest of the worlds noise, I shall listen for only him because today is the day for remembering. Never underestimate how the experiences of today will influence the thoughts of tomorrow for young people in care systems of all kinds. Those memories are packaged up and taken with us, they never leave. The kindnesses shown or the pain witnessed, we can influence that, we can make sure that things change. But just for today, I shall be taking my sixteen year old self and sitting by the graveside of my nineteen year old friend who never got the chance to grow old xxxxx